JP7616320B2 - Printing device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a printing device in which printing authority differs for each user.

Conventionally, there are printing devices that execute processing based on user identification information included in a received print job (for example, Patent Document 1). The printer device described in Patent Document 1 executes printing as normal when a pre-registered user identifier is set in the print job data. If the user identifier set in the print job data is not registered, printing is not executed. Also, if a user identifier is not set in the print job data, the printer device executes the print job according to a pre-set operating mode.

JP 2004-314547 A

In the printer device described above, the processing content is changed depending on whether or not a user can be registered. However, in this type of printing device, in addition to registering a user, if the authority of a user who can execute the printing device is set in advance, for example, it is necessary to execute processing according to the authority of the set user. Also, in the printing device described above, if the identification information of a pre-registered user is set in the print job data, printing is executed when the print job data is received, so that the printed matter will be discharged even if another user is operating the printing device.

The present specification has been proposed in view of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a technique that can execute appropriate print processing for each user in a printing device in which printing authority differs for each user.

The printing device disclosed in this specification includes a storage unit that stores authentication data in which user identification information for identifying a user and print enable/disable information regarding whether or not a print process can be executed in response to a command from the user according to the user identification information are associated with each other, a communication unit, an operation unit that accepts operations by the user, a printing unit, and a control unit. The control unit performs a reception process of receiving a print job associated with the user identification information via the communication unit, a first identification process of identifying whether or not the user identification information associated with the print job received by the reception process is registered in the authentication data, and a second identification process of identifying whether or not the user identification information associated with the print job is registered in the authentication data. The method executes a second identification process to identify the printability information in the authentication data corresponding to user identification information, a storage process to store in the memory unit the print job for which a first identification result was obtained based on the results of the first identification process and the second identification process, and not store in the memory unit the print job for which a second identification result different from the first identification result was obtained, an acceptance process to accept a login operation using the user identification information by the operation unit, and a first printing process to print by the printing unit an image related to the print job stored in the memory unit, which is the print job associated with the user identification information accepted in the login operation.

According to the technology disclosed in this specification , whether or not to save a print job in a storage unit is controlled according to registration information regarding whether or not user identification information is registered and print permission information regarding printing authority. Therefore, it is possible to prevent unnecessary print jobs from being saved in the storage unit according to the user's registration status and user authority. In addition, the print job saved in the storage unit is printed when a login operation of the user is accepted. In other words, since the print job is not discharged as a printout until the user logs in, it is possible to prevent other users from seeing the printout, and appropriate printing processing can be provided to the user.

The technology disclosed in this specification can be realized in various forms, for example, as a method for realizing the functions of the above-mentioned device , a computer program, a recording medium on which the computer program is recorded, etc.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of the MFP. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing data stored in an authentication DB. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the contents of a print job described in PJL. 6 is a sequence diagram showing state transitions of a screen displayed on a touch panel of the MFP. 13 is a flowchart showing the contents of a main process. 10 is a flowchart showing the contents of a printing/storage process. 10 is a flowchart showing the contents of a printing/storage process. 13 is a flowchart showing the contents of a process after an icon is pressed.

An MFP 1, which is an embodiment of a printing device, will be described below with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of the MFP 1.

(1. Configuration of MFP)
The MFP 1 is a multifunction machine having a printing function, a copying function, a scanning function, and a fax function. As shown in Fig. 1, the MFP 1 includes a CPU 12, a RAM 13, a memory 15, a printing unit 16, an image reading unit 17, a fax communication unit 18, a user interface 20, and a network interface 24. The CPU 12 and other components are connected to each other via a bus 11. The MFP 1 also includes a power supply 25 that supplies power from a commercial power source. The power supply 25 includes a power cord and a power supply circuit (bridge diode, smoothing circuit, etc.), generates DC power from the commercial power source, and supplies power to each component of the MFP 1 via a power line.

The memory 15 (an example of a storage unit) is, for example, a non-volatile memory such as NVRAM. The storage unit is not limited to NVRAM, and may be a volatile RAM, ROM, HDD, an external storage device (such as a USB memory) connected to the MFP1, or a storage unit that combines them. The storage unit may also be a file server connected via the network interface 24. The storage unit may also be a computer-readable storage medium. A computer-readable storage medium is a non-transitory medium. In addition to the above examples, non-transitory media also include recording media such as CD-ROMs and DVD-ROMs. A non-transitory medium is also a tangible medium. On the other hand, an electrical signal that carries a program downloaded from a server on the Internet is a computer-readable signal medium, which is a type of computer-readable medium, but is not included in non-transitory computer-readable storage media.

The memory 15 stores various programs such as a control program 71. The control program 71 is, for example, a program that controls each part of the MFP 1 in an integrated manner. The CPU 12 executes the control program 71 and controls each part connected by the bus 11 while temporarily storing the executed processing results in the RAM 13. The control program 71 also includes an EWS (Embedded Web Server) program that functions as a Web server. The CPU 12 executes the EWS program to make the MFP 1 function as a Web server. In addition, an authentication DB (abbreviation of database) 73 is constructed in the memory 15 of this embodiment. As described later, the authentication DB 73 is data that associates, for example, the user name of a login user who can log in to the MFP 1, the authority of each user, and the email address of each user (see FIG. 2). In the following description, the MFP 1 that executes the control program 71 and the like with the CPU 12 may be simply described as the device name. For example, the statement "MFP1 accepts operational input to touch panel 21" may mean that "MFP1 executes control program 71 in CPU 12 to control touch panel 21, thereby accepting operational input to touch panel 21."

The printing unit 16 has a head 161 and an ink cartridge 162. The ink cartridge 162 contains ink. The head 161 ejects the ink supplied from the ink cartridge 162 onto a sheet (such as paper or an OHP). As a result, the printing unit 16 prints an image on the sheet by an inkjet method based on the control of the CPU 12. Note that the printing unit 16 is not limited to a configuration that performs printing by the inkjet method, and may be configured to perform printing by another method, for example, an electrophotographic method.

The image reading unit 17 includes a document tray (not shown) and an image sensor such as a CIS (Contact Image Sensor) or a CCD (Charge-Coupled Device). The image reading unit 17 moves the CIS or the like relative to the document placed on the document tray, reads the document, and generates image data. The FAX communication unit 18 transmits and receives FAX data to and from other facsimile devices via a telephone line.

The user interface 20 has operation buttons such as a touch panel 21 and a numeric keypad 22. The touch panel 21 includes, for example, a liquid crystal panel, a light source such as an LED that emits light from the rear side of the liquid crystal panel, and a touch-sensitive film attached to the surface of the liquid crystal panel. The user interface 20 displays, for example, various setting screens and the operating state of the device on the touch panel 21 under the control of the CPU 12. The user interface 20 also transmits signals to the CPU 12 in response to operation inputs made to the touch panel 21 and the numeric keypad 22. Note that the MFP 1 of this embodiment includes the touch panel 21 that serves as both a display unit and an operation unit, but is not limited to this, and for example, hardware keys may be provided as an operation unit separate from the display unit.

The network interface 24 is, for example, a LAN (Local Area Network) interface, and is connected to the router 29 via a LAN cable (not shown). In this embodiment, the router 29 is connected to, for example, a plurality of PCs 41 and a mail server 43. The user operates the PC 41 to send a print job 75 from the PC 41 to the MFP 1. The MFP 1 executes a print process based on the print job 75 received from the PC 41. The MFP 1 also processes the mail received from the mail server 43 as a print job 75, and executes printing of a file attached to the mail, etc. Note that the device that sends the print job 75 to the MFP 1 is not limited to the PC 41 or the mail server 43, but may be, for example, a mobile terminal capable of wireless communication with the MFP 1. Also, the network that connects the MFP 1, the PC 41, and the mail server 43 is not limited to a wired LAN, but may be, for example, a wireless LAN or a WAN (including the Internet).

Next, the authentication DB 73 stored in the memory 15 will be described.
2 shows an example of data stored in the authentication DB 73. As shown in FIG. 2, for example, a user name 111, a PIN number 113, a print authority flag 114, a scan authority flag 115, a copy authority flag 116, and an email address 117 are associated with each other and registered as one record in the authentication DB 73. In the authentication DB 73 of this embodiment, five users, namely, a public user (PUBLIC), "inoue", "kato", "hayashi", and "minami", are registered as users. The user name 111 and the PIN number 113 are given to each user by, for example, a system administrator who manages the MFP 1. Each user performs a login operation of the MFP 1 using the user name 111 and the PIN number 113.

The print permission flag 114, scan permission flag 115, and copy permission flag 116 are flag values that set whether each user is granted permission to execute the print function, scan function, and copy function of MFP1. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 2, the public user and the user name "inoue" have print permission and scan permission, but do not have copy permission.

In addition, in each record, an email address 117 is set in association with the user name 111, PIN number 113, etc. As described above, the MFP 1 of this embodiment is capable of printing attachments to emails received from the mail server 43.

The system administrator adds or deletes users, changes the authority, registers email addresses 117, and so on, as shown in FIG. 2, in the authentication DB 73. For example, the MFP 1 of this embodiment is capable of accepting settings for the authentication DB 73 through the EWS. For example, the system administrator operates a web browser on the PC 41 to access the EWS of the MFP 1. The MFP 1 executes settings for the authentication DB 73 based on the information accepted on the web page of the EWS. Note that the method of editing the authentication DB 73 is not limited to the method using the web server described above. For example, the MFP 1 may edit the authentication DB 73 in response to an operation input to the touch panel 21. Also, the data items of the authentication DB 73 shown in FIG. 2 are merely examples, and the authentication DB 73 may have, for example, a flag value that grants authority to execute the FAX function, or a value that limits the number of prints for each user.

(2. Secure Print Function and Stored Print Function)
The MFP 1 of this embodiment has a security printing function and an accumulation printing function. In the following description, as shown in FIG. 1, a print job 75 for executing the security printing function is referred to as a security printing job 75A, and a print job 75 for executing the accumulation printing function is referred to as an accumulation printing job 75B.

When the accumulated print function receives a print job 75 with a user name 85 set from the PC 41 or the like, it stores the received print job 75 in the memory 15 of the MFP 1 as an accumulated print job 75B. When a user name and PIN number are input via the touch panel 21 of the MFP 1, they are collated with the user name 111 and PIN number 113 (see FIG. 2) registered in the authentication DB 73. If the collation results in a match with the user name 111 and PIN number 113 registered in the authentication DB 73, the user who performed the input operation logs in to the MFP 1. When the user logs in to the MFP 1, the accumulated print job 75B associated with the logged-in user's user name 85 is retrieved from the memory 15 and printing begins.

The accumulated print function is set by the system administrator operating the web browser on the PC 41 and accessing the EWS of the MFP 1. When the accumulated print function is set to be executed, the MFP 1 executes the processes for accumulated print described in this embodiment for the print job 75 received from an external device such as the PC 41. When the accumulated print function is set not to be executed, the MFP 1 starts the print process without storing the job in the memory 15 when it receives the print job 75 from an external device such as the PC 41. In this case, not storing the job in the memory 15 means that a trigger for starting printing is not provided separately, and does not include the process of temporarily storing the job in the memory 15 for the print process. The printer driver executed on the PC 41 sets the user account of the user for logging in to the PC 41 in the print job 75 and sends it to the MFP 1. The same character string is used for the user account for logging in to the PC 41 and the user name 111 registered in the authentication DB 73.

The security printing function is a function in which a print job 75 associated with a password is temporarily stored in the memory 15 of the MFP 1, and the user operates the touch panel 21 of the MFP 1 to input the password associated with the print job 75 to print the print job 75. When the PC 41 executes the security printing function, it sends a security printing job 75A, in which a job name 81 and a password 83 are set, to the MFP 1. The job name 81 is, for example, the name of the print job 75 given by the printer driver executed by the PC 41. The password 83 is, for example, information (such as numbers or letters) set by the user on the setting screen of the printer driver executed by the PC 41 and associated with the security printing job 75A.

The accumulated printing function and the security printing function are similar in that a print job 75 received from outside is accumulated in memory 15, and printing is started when the user inputs authentication information on the MFP 1. However, the authentication information to be input is a password 83 associated with the print job 75 in the security printing function, whereas it is a PIN number 113 corresponding to a user name 111 registered in the authentication DB 73 in the accumulated printing function. Also, the print job 75 that starts printing is a print job 75 selected by the user in the security printing function, whereas it is all print jobs 75 to be printed in the accumulated printing function.

FIG. 3 shows a print job 75 written in PJL (Printer Job Language) as an example. The data contents in FIG. 3 are an example. As shown in FIG. 3, for example, the header of the print job 75 contains commands to set variables (JOB_NAME, etc.) in the order of job name 81, user name 85, password 83, transmission time, and description language type. The MFP 1 changes the processing contents of the print job 75 based on the data set in the header of the received print job 75, for example. For example, if a valid value is set in the variable "JOB_PASSWORD" indicating the password 83, the MFP 1 determines that the password 83 is set in the received print job 75 and treats it as a security printing job 75A. Also, for example, if a valid value is set in "PRINT_USER" indicating the user name 85, the MFP 1 determines that the user name 85 is set in the received print job 75. For printer languages other than PJL, the settings of the user name 85, etc. can be detected by determining the contents defined in each language in the same way.

Figure 4 shows the state transition of the screen displayed on the touch panel 21 of the MFP 1. S19 to S29 in Figure 4 are processes related to the login operation to the MFP 1. For example, after the MFP 1 is turned on and executes the control program 71 to start the system, it displays the standby screen 91 shown in the upper left of Figure 4 on the touch panel 21 (see Figure 1). The MFP 1 displays function icons 93 for selecting a FAX function, copy function, scan function, etc. in the center of the standby screen 91. The MFP 1 also displays a user display field 95 for displaying the currently selected user name in the upper left of the standby screen 91. When the power is turned on, since no one has logged in yet, the MFP 1 displays in the user display field 95 on the standby screen 91 that a public user, which indicates a logged-out state, is selected. The MFP 1 of this embodiment processes a print job 75 of a user not registered in the authentication DB 73 as a print job 75 of this public user. When the standby screen 91 is displayed, functions (such as a scan function) according to the authority granted to the public user (see FIG. 2) can be executed. The MFP 1 also displays a date and time field 97 indicating the current time and date in the lower right corner of the standby screen 91. The MFP 1 also displays triangular icons 98 on both the left and right sides of the standby screen 91, indicating that scrolling in the left and right directions is possible.

In S19 of FIG. 4, when the user touches the user display field 95 that displays the public users, the MFP 1 displays a user selection window 109 on the touch panel 21. The user selection window 109 displays the user names 111 registered in the authentication DB 73.

After displaying the user names 111 registered in the authentication DB 73 in the user selection window 109, when the user touches one of the user names 111 in the user selection window 109, for example, the user name 111 of "inoue" (S21), the MFP 1 displays a PIN number input window 121 for inputting the PIN number 113. The MFP 1 displays a numeric keypad 123 for inputting the PIN number 113 and a PIN number input field 124 in the PIN number input window 121. When the PIN number 113 is input in the PIN number input field 124 using the numeric keypad 123, the MFP 1 determines whether the input PIN number 113 matches the PIN number 113 associated with the user name 111 selected in the user selection window 109 (in this case, "1111" of "inoue" in FIG. 2) (S23). If the PIN numbers 113 match, the MFP 1 permits login. Although details will be described later, if stored print jobs 75B associated with the logged-in user are stored in memory 15 and the logged-in user has been granted print authority, MFP1 prints all stored stored print jobs 75B (S23). Also, if print data for received emails associated with the logged-in user are stored in memory 15 and the logged-in user has been granted print authority, MFP1 prints all stored print data for received emails (such as attachments) (S23).

The MFP 1 displays the second standby screen 91B after login. The MFP 1 displays the name of the logged-in user (e.g., "inoue") in the user display field 95 of the second standby screen 91B. In this state, the logged-in user can only execute functions permitted in the authentication DB 73. Therefore, the MFP 1 restricts the execution authority of each user by restricting the functions after login based on the authority set in the authentication DB 73. For example, even if a user without copy authority touches the copy function icon 93, the function is not executed. Note that the MFP 1 does not have to display the function icon 93 of a function for which the logged-in user does not have authority, i.e., cannot execute, on the second standby screen 91B.

When the user display field 95 is touched while the second standby screen 91B is displayed (S25), the MFP 1 displays a logout window 126. The MFP 1 displays a selection key 125 in the logout window 126 to select whether or not to execute logout. When the "YES" selection key 125 is touched to instruct execution of logout (S27), the MFP 1 displays the standby screen 91 on the touch panel 21. This completes logout. Furthermore, if a certain period of time has elapsed while the second standby screen 91B is displayed, the MFP 1 returns the display on the touch panel 21 from the second standby screen 91B to the standby screen 91 (S29). This certain period of time is, for example, 30 seconds to 1 minute.

(3. Operation of MFP1)
Next, the operation of the MFP 1 of this embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 5 to 8. Figure 5 shows the flow of main processing for processing a print job 75. For example, when the power is turned on, the MFP 1 executes the control program 71 in the CPU 12 to start up the system, and then executes the main processing shown in Figure 5. The following description will mainly focus on print processing based on the print job 75. As print processing based on received mail can be executed in the same way as the print job 75, a description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

The sequence diagrams and flowcharts in this specification basically show the processing of the CPU 12 according to the instructions written in a program (such as the control program 71). That is, the processes such as "determination," "reception," "acquisition," "acceptance," "control," and "setting" in the following description represent the processing of the CPU 12. The processing by the CPU 12 also includes hardware control.

First, in S31 of FIG. 5, the CPU 12 of the MFP 1 checks whether a print job 75 has been received. As described below, the CPU 12 executes S31 again after executing S41 and so on. Therefore, after starting up the system, the CPU 12 periodically checks whether a print job 75 has been received. The CPU 12 determines whether a print job 75 has been received based on the result of the check in S31 (S33). If the CPU 12 determines that a print job 75 has been received (S33: YES), it executes the print/storage process in S35. On the other hand, if the CPU 12 determines that a print job 75 has not been received (S33: NO), it executes S37. Note that, for example, if the CPU 12 receives multiple print jobs 75, it executes the processes from S31 onwards for the multiple print jobs 75 in the order in which they were received.

In S37, the CPU 12 determines whether a user has logged in. The CPU 12 determines that a user has logged in when the processes of S19 to S23 in FIG. 4 have been performed. From S37 onwards, the CPU 12 executes the processes related to accumulated printing from S19 onwards in FIG. 4 described above. When the CPU 12 determines that a user has logged in (S37: YES), it determines whether there is an accumulated printing job 75B associated with the logged-in user among the accumulated printing jobs 75B accumulated in the memory 15 (S39). Specifically, if the user name 85 set in "PRINT_USER" among the accumulated printing jobs 75B accumulated in the memory 15 matches the user name 111 registered in the authentication DB 73 for the logged-in user, it determines that there is an accumulated printing job 75B associated with the logged-in user. Furthermore, if the print job 75 stored in memory 15 is a received email, and there is a print job 75 with a sender email address that matches the email address 117 registered in authentication DB 73, it is determined that there is an accumulated print job 75B associated with the logged-in user. When the CPU 12 determines that there is an accumulated print job 75B for the logged-in user (S39: YES), it executes printing of the accumulated print job 75B by the printing unit 16 (S41). In this case, printing of all print jobs stored in memory 15 is automatically started without requiring the user to select a job or enter a password. This eliminates the complexity of operations required of the user.

After executing S41, the CPU 12 executes the process from S31 again. Also, if the user is not logged in at S37 (S37: NO), or if there is no stored print job 75B associated with the logged-in user at S39 (S39: NO), the CPU 12 executes the process from S31. Then, the CPU 12 checks for the reception of a new print job 75 at S31 and executes the process from S33 onward.

(3-1. Printing/Storage Processing)
Next, the contents of the print/storage process in S35 in Fig. 5 will be described with reference to Fig. 6 and Fig. 7. When the print/storage process is executed, a newly received print job 75 is present in S33 in Fig. 5 (S33: YES). The CPU 12 executes the processes from S43 onward, treating this newly received print job 75 as the print job 75 to be processed. First, in S43, the CPU 12 checks whether a user name 85 and a password 83 are set for the print job 75 to be processed.

Next, in S45, the CPU 12 determines whether or not a password 83 is set for the print job 75 to be processed based on the confirmation result of S43. For example, if a valid value is set for the "JOB_PASSWORD" variable (see FIG. 3) in the print job 75, the CPU 12 determines that a password 83 is set for the print job 75 to be processed (S45: YES). If the CPU 12 determines that a password 83 is set for the print job 75 to be processed (S45: YES), it executes S46 in FIG. 7. If the CPU 12 determines that a password 83 is not set for the print job 75 to be processed (S45: NO), it determines whether or not a user name 85 is set for the print job 75 to be processed (S47).

For example, if a valid value is set in the "PRINT_USER" variable (see FIG. 3) in the print job 75, the CPU 12 determines that the user name 85 is set in the print job 75 to be processed (S47: YES) and executes S49. On the other hand, if the CPU 12 determines that the user name 85 is not set in the print job 75 to be processed (S47: NO), the CPU 12 discards the print job 75 to be processed without saving it in the memory 15 (S51). After executing S51, the CPU 12 ends the print/storage process. For example, depending on the type of printer driver, the user name 85 may not be assigned to the print job 75. Alternatively, some systems that transmit the print job 75 do not set the user name 85. For this reason, the MFP 1 may receive a print job 75 in which the user name 85 or password 83 is not set. Therefore, the CPU 12 of this embodiment discards the print job 75 in which the user name 85, etc. is not set. This makes it possible to prevent print jobs 75 for which a user name 85 or the like is not set from being stored in memory 15 without being printed, which may cause a burden on the storage area of memory 15. Note that the CPU 12 may print print jobs 75 for which a user name 85 or the like is not set without storing the jobs in memory 15.

In addition, in S49, the CPU 12 determines whether the user name 85 set in the print job 75 to be processed is a user name 111 (see FIG. 2) registered in the authentication DB 73. As shown in FIG. 2, in this embodiment, four user names 111, including "inoue" and the like, are registered in the authentication DB 73, excluding "PUBLIC". Therefore, the CPU 12 accesses the authentication DB 73 in S49, and if the user name 85 set in the print job 75 to be processed corresponds to any one of the four user names 111, it determines that the user name 85 is a user name 111 registered in the authentication DB 73 (S49: YES). In addition, if the print job 75 is an incoming email, it determines the sender's email address and the email address 117 registered in the authentication DB 73.

When the CPU 12 determines that the user name 85 of the print job 75 is the user name 111 registered in the authentication DB 73 (S49: YES), it determines whether the user has been granted print authority (S53). As shown in FIG. 2, in the authentication DB 73 of this embodiment, the users with the user names 111 "inoue" and "hayashi" are granted print authority (see the print authority flag 114). Therefore, when the user name 85 of the print job 75 to be processed is "inoue" or "hayashi", the CPU 12 determines that the user has print authority (S53: YES) and executes S55. Here, for example, when the CPU 12 of this embodiment stores the print job 75 in the memory 15, the storage area for storing the security printing job 75A and the storage area for storing the accumulated printing job 75B are different storage areas. In S55, the CPU 12 stores the print job 75 to be processed, for example, in a storage area of the memory 15 for storing stored print jobs 75B. The print job 75 stored in the memory 15 in S55 is printed as stored print job 75B in S41 of FIG. 5. After executing S55, the CPU 12 ends the print/storage process.

If the CPU 12 determines in S53 that the user does not have printing authority (S53: NO), it discards the print job 75 to be processed (S51). This prevents the print job 75 from continuing to accumulate in the memory 15 because the user does not have printing authority and accumulated printing cannot be performed, thereby preventing the memory 15 from taking up space.

Furthermore, if the CPU 12 determines in S49 that the user name 85 of the print job 75 to be processed is not registered in the authentication DB 73 (S49: NO), the CPU 12 processes the print job 75 to be processed as a print job 75 of a public user (S57 in FIG. 7). In S57 in FIG. 7, the CPU 12 determines whether the public user in the authentication DB 73 has been granted printing authority.

As shown in FIG. 2, the public user in this embodiment can be set with print authority. If the public user is granted print authority (see print authority flag 114), the CPU 12 starts processing to print the print job 75 to be processed (S59). Therefore, the CPU 12 in this embodiment processes the print job 75 of the unregistered user as the print job 75 of the public user, and starts immediate printing processing without storing it. On the other hand, if the print authority is not set for the public user (S57: NO), the CPU 12 discards the print job 75 to be processed without storing it in the memory 15 (S61), and ends the print/storage processing. This makes it possible to enhance security by prohibiting printing by an unregistered user. In addition, it is possible to prevent a print job 75 with a user name 85 but an unregistered user name 85 being stored in the memory 15 without being printed, which can prevent the memory area of the memory 15 from being compressed. In addition, in FIG. 2, "OK (immediate printing)" is written as an example of the print authority of the public user. This explanation uses "(immediate printing)" to clarify that when a public user is granted printing authority in the stored printing function, the print job is printed immediately without storage, but it is sufficient to set only "OK" as the registration in the authentication DB 73. Also, to allow the system administrator to easily understand what kind of printing process is being executed, a setting screen that indicates "OK (immediate printing)" may be displayed when the stored printing function is set.

In addition, in S59, the CPU 12 determines whether or not at least one of the conditions of the user being logged in and the print job 75 being executed is satisfied. If at least one of the conditions of the registered user being logged in and the print job 75 being executed is satisfied (S59: NO), the CPU 12 repeatedly executes the determination process of S59. If a print job 75 with an unregistered user name 85 is executed during login or printing processing, there is a risk that printed materials discharged to the paper output tray of the MFP 1 will be mixed. As a result, there is a risk that confidential documents, etc. will be seen or taken by other users. Therefore, the CPU 12 of this embodiment does not execute a print job 75 with an unregistered user name 85 during login or execution of the print job 75. This makes it possible to prevent print materials from being mixed when, for example, a print job 75 with an unregistered user name 85 is executed while a user is logged in and operating the touch panel 21, or while a user is logged out but executing a print job 75.

Furthermore, if the CPU 12 does not meet both the conditions of being logged in and of printing job 75 being executed, i.e., printing is not being executed in a logged out state (S59: YES), the CPU 12 determines whether a certain amount of time has passed since the previous printing process ended (S63). If the next printing process is started immediately after the previous printing process ends, there is a risk that printed materials discharged from the MFP 1 will be mixed up. Therefore, in this embodiment, the CPU 12 waits a certain amount of time after the previous printing process ends before executing printing of the printing job 75 to be processed. This more reliably prevents users from mixing up printed materials, and improves security.

If a certain amount of time has passed since the previous print process was completed (S63: NO), the CPU 12 executes S67. If a certain amount of time has not passed since the previous print process was completed (S63: YES), the CPU 12 waits for a certain amount of time (S65) before executing S67. The wait time in S65 is, for example, the time required for the user to remove the previously printed material from the paper output tray, and is, for example, 5 to 15 seconds.

In S67, the CPU 12 executes printing of the print job 75 to be processed, i.e., the print job 75 for which an unregistered user name 85 is set. This allows the print job 75 for which an unregistered user name 85 is set to be printed immediately without storage, using the printing authority of the public user. After executing S67, the CPU 12 ends the print/storage process.

As shown in S29 of FIG. 4, when 30 seconds have elapsed while the second standby screen 91B after login is displayed, the MFP 1 of this embodiment returns the display on the touch panel 21 from the second standby screen 91B to the standby screen 91. For this reason, if logout occurs due to a timeout, it is highly likely that the fixed time of 5 to 15 seconds after the end of printing has elapsed. Therefore, if logout occurs due to a timeout, the CPU 12 will start printing (S67) without waiting for the fixed time after logout (S63: NO). On the other hand, if logout occurs due to an operation on the touch panel 21, it is possible that the fixed time has not elapsed since the end of the previous printing process. For this reason, the CPU 12 determines the fixed time in S63, and if the fixed time has not elapsed, will wait in S65.

In addition, in S45 of FIG. 6, if the CPU 12 determines that a password 83 is set for the print job 75 to be processed (S45: NO), it determines whether the print job 75 to be processed matches a predetermined condition (S46 of FIG. 7). Among the print jobs 75 for which a password 83 is set, there are, for example, 1) those for which a user name 85 is not set, 2) those for which a user name 85 is set and there is printing authority, 3) those for which a user name 85 is set and the user name 85 is not registered, and 4) those for which a user name 85 is set and there is no printing authority. The CPU 12 makes a judgment in S46 based on these conditions.

In the case of 1), the print job 75 does not have a user name 85 and a password 83 is set, that is, the print job 75A is the security printing job to be printed. Therefore, when the CPU 12 determines that the user name 85 is not set for the print job 75 of 1) (S46: NO), it stores the print job 75A with the password 83 in the memory 15 (S69) and ends the print/storage process. For example, the CPU 12 stores the print job 75 to be processed in a storage area of the memory 15 for storing the security printing job 75A. In the case of 2), the CPU 12 also executes S69. In this case, the user has the printing authority, so the print job 75 is processed as a security printing print job 75. In the case of 3), the CPU 12 also executes S69. In this case, the unregistered user who cannot perform storage printing may want to perform security printing, so the print job 75 is processed as a security printing print job 75.

On the other hand, in the case of 4), although a password 83 and a user name 85 are set in the print job 75, the user name 85 does not have the printing authority. In this case, the system administrator does not intentionally permit this user to print. For this reason, it is preferable that such a user is not permitted to execute security printing. Therefore, the CPU 12 discards the print job 75 in which the user name 85 of a registered user without printing authority is set as meeting a predetermined condition (S46: YES) (S61). This ensures the security of the print process in line with the intention of the system administrator, and suppresses the accumulation of unnecessary print jobs 75. Note that the judgment conditions and judgment results of 1) to 4) above are merely examples, and may be changed as appropriate depending on, for example, the security policy or usability of a company or the like. For example, the CPU 12 may discard the print job 75 in which the user name 85 is set and which is not registered (S61). This makes it possible to prohibit printing by unregistered users in both accumulated printing and security printing.

(3-2. Processing after pressing an icon)
Next, the processing of the CPU 12 in security printing will be described with reference to Fig. 8. Fig. 8 shows the contents of the icon pressing process after pressing the function icon 93A of the security printing function shown on the first standby screen 91A in Fig. 4. For example, in S11 of Fig. 4, when the user performs an operation to scroll the standby screen 91 displayed on the touch panel 21 to the left, the CPU 12 displays the first standby screen 91A on the touch panel 21. The CPU 12 displays the function icon 93A for security printing on the first standby screen 91A. When the function icon 93A on the first standby screen 91A is touched, the CPU 12 displays the job selection window 101 (S13 of Fig. 4) and starts the processing shown in Fig. 8.

First, in S71 of FIG. 8, the CPU 12 displays a list of the job names 81 of the security printing jobs 75A stored in S69 of FIG. 7 in the job selection window 101 of the touch panel 21 (see FIG. 4). In this embodiment, in S46 of FIG. 7, the CPU 12 stores in the memory 15 not only the print job 75 with only the password 83 in 1), but also the print jobs 75 in cases 2) and 3) (S69). Therefore, for example, the print job 75 with the password 83 and the user name 85 with printing authority is also displayed in the job selection window 101 as the security printing job 75A. Note that, when the function icon 93A of the security printing function is touched by scrolling the screen on the second standby screen 91B during login shown in FIG. 4, the CPU 12 may display all the stored security printing jobs 75A in the job selection window 101. Alternatively, the CPU 12 may store and print the security printing job 75A and the stored printing job 75B related to the logged-in user together in response to the login operation of S23.

Next, the CPU 12 determines whether any of the job names 81 displayed in the job selection window 101 has been touched (S73). The CPU 12 repeats the process of S73 until a job name 81 is touched (S73: NO). If a job name 81 is not selected after a certain period of time (e.g., 30 seconds) has elapsed, the CPU 12 may close the job selection window 101 and return the display on the touch panel 21 to the first standby screen 91A or the standby screen 91.

When any job name 81 in the job selection window 101 is touched (S73: YES, S15 in FIG. 4), the CPU 12 displays the password input window 103 in FIG. 4 on the touch panel 21 (S75). After displaying the password input window 103, the CPU 12 judges whether the input of the password 83 in the password input window 103 has been confirmed (S77). For example, when the confirmation key of the numeric keypad 22 (see FIG. 1) is pressed while the password input window 103 in FIG. 4 is displayed, the CPU 12 judges that the input of the password 83 has been confirmed (S77: YES). The CPU 12 repeatedly executes the process of S77 until the input of the password 83 is confirmed (S77: NO). Note that if the input of the password 83 is not confirmed even after a certain period of time has elapsed, the CPU 12 may erase the password input window 103 and display the job selection window 101.

When the input of the password 83 is confirmed (S77: YES), the CPU 12 determines whether the password 83 entered in the password input window 103 matches the password 83 of the selected security printing job 75A (S79, S17 in FIG. 4). If the passwords 83 match (S79: YES), the CPU 12 executes printing of the security printing job 75A (S81, S17 in FIG. 4). The CPU 12 ends the process in FIG. 8 and, for example, displays the print execution screen 107 in FIG. 4 on the touch panel 21 during printing, and displays the standby screen 91 on the touch panel 21 when printing is completed.

On the other hand, if the passwords 83 do not match (S79: NO), the CPU 12 displays an error message on the touch panel 21 (S83). After displaying the error message for a certain period of time, the CPU 12 ends the process of FIG. 8 and displays the password input window 103 again. The CPU 12 then executes the process from S75 again, for example. In this way, the CPU 12 of this embodiment executes the security printing function.

Incidentally, the MFP 1 is an example of a printing device. The CPU 12 is an example of a control unit. The memory 15 is an example of a storage unit. The touch panel 21 is an example of an operation unit. The network interface 24 is an example of a communication unit. The authentication DB 73 is an example of authentication data. The password 83 is an example of authentication information. The user names 85 and 111 are examples of user identification information. The print permission flag 114 is an example of print permission information.

(4. Effects)
According to the above-described embodiment, the following effects are achieved.
(1) The MFP 1 of this embodiment includes a memory 15 that stores an authentication DB 73 in which a user name 111 that identifies a user and a print authority flag 114 indicating whether or not a print process can be executed in response to a command from a user corresponding to the user name 111 are associated with each other, a network interface 24, a touch panel 21 that accepts user operations, a printing unit 16, and a CPU 12. The CPU 12 executes a receiving process (S31) for receiving the print job 75 associated with the user name 85 via the network interface 24, a first identification process (S49) for identifying whether the user name 85 associated with the print job 75 received by the receiving process is registered in the authentication DB 73, a second identification process (S53) for identifying the print authority flag 114 in the authentication DB 73 corresponding to the user name 85 associated with the print job 75, a storage process for storing in the memory 15 the print job 75 for which a first identification result has been obtained as a result of the first identification process and the second identification process (S55) and not storing in the memory 15 the print job 75 for which a second identification result different from the first identification result has been obtained (S51), a receiving process (S23) for receiving a login operation by the user name 85 via the touch panel 21, and a first printing process (S23) for printing, by the printing unit 16, an image related to the print job 75 stored in the memory 15, which is the print job 75 associated with the user name 85 accepted in the login operation.

This makes it possible to prevent unnecessary print jobs 75 from being stored in memory 15 depending on the user's registration status and authority. Furthermore, print jobs 75 stored in memory 15 are printed when a user logs in. In other words, the print job is not ejected as a printout until the user logs in, which prevents other users from seeing the printout and provides appropriate printing processing for the user.

(2) The CPU 12 also saves the print job 75 when the first identification result indicates that the user name 85 associated with the print job 75 is set as the authority in the authentication DB 73 to be allowed to print (S53: YES). The CPU 12 does not save the print job 75 when the second identification result indicates that the user name 85 associated with the print job 75 is not registered in the authentication DB 73 (S49: NO) and that the authority for an unregistered user is set as not allowed to print in the authentication DB 73 (S57: NO). The CPU 12 does not save in the memory 15 the print job 75 for which the third identification result is obtained as a result of the first and second identification processes, in which the user name 85 associated with the print job 75 is set as the authority in the authentication DB 73 to be not allowed to print (S51). The CPU 12 also executes a second print process (S67) in which the image related to the print job 75 for which a fourth identification result has been obtained in which the user name 85 associated with the print job 75 is not registered in the authentication DB 73 (S49: NO) and the authority for the unregistered user in the authentication DB 73 is set to printable, is printed by the printing unit 16 without requiring a login operation.

This allows appropriate processing to be performed for each of the first to fourth identification results based on the registration information and the printability information of each user and unregistered users in the authentication DB73.

(3) Furthermore, when the fourth identification result is obtained, the CPU 12 executes a login determination process (S59) to determine whether or not the user is currently logged in with the user name 85. If the login determination process determines that the user is currently logged in with the user name 85 (S59: NO), the CPU 12 does not execute the second print process (S67). If the login determination process determines that the user is not currently logged in with the user name 85 (S59: YES), the CPU 12 executes the second print process (S67).

When logged in, the printing process of the print job 75 of an unregistered user is not executed, which prevents printed materials printed by the user while logged in from being mixed with printed materials printed by unregistered users. This also prevents situations such as a user taking another user's printed materials, making it possible to increase the security of printed materials.

(4) If the CPU 12 determines in the login determination process that the user is currently logged in with the user name 85 (S59: NO), the print job 75 for which the fourth identification result was obtained is executed in the second print process (S67) after the currently logged-in user name 85 logs out. If the logout is based on an operation on the touch panel 21 (S63: YES), the CPU 12 waits a certain period of time after the logout before starting printing (S65). If the logout is based on a timeout that occurs after a certain period of time has elapsed without receiving an operation on the touch panel 21 (S63: NO), the CPU 12 starts printing without waiting a certain period of time after the logout.

When logging out by operating the touch panel 21, if a printed document is discharged immediately after logging out, there is a risk that the user who logged out may mistake the discharged printed document for their own printed document. Therefore, in the case of logging out based on operating the touch panel 21, by waiting a certain period of time before executing the second printing process, it is possible to prevent the user from confusing the printed documents. Also, in the case of logging out based on a timeout, by executing the second printing process without waiting a certain period of time, printing can be started promptly.

(5) If the printing unit 16 is not currently printing (S59: YES), the CPU 12 executes an elapsed time determination process (S63) to determine whether a certain amount of time has elapsed since printing ended. If the login determination process determines that the user is not currently logged in with the user name 85 (S59: YES) and if the elapsed time determination process determines that a certain amount of time has elapsed (S63: NO), the CPU 12 executes a second print process (S67).

If the next printed material is discharged immediately after printing, there is a possibility that the user who printed earlier may mistakenly believe that the subsequently discharged printed material is their own. Therefore, the print job 75 of an unregistered user is not executed immediately after the previously executed print, but is executed after a certain period of time has passed. This prevents users from confusing the printed materials.

(6) The CPU 12 also stores in the memory 15 the print job 75 received via the network interface 24, the print job 75 including at least one of the user name 85 and the password 83. In response to receiving a login operation via the touch panel 21, the CPU 12 retrieves from the memory 15 a print job 75 for stored printing 75B that is associated with the user name 85 acquired in the login operation and does not include the password 83, and prints it (S23). In response to the selection of the print job 75 associated with the password 83 via the touch panel 21 (S15), the CPU 12 also receives input of the password 83 via the touch panel 21, and retrieves from the memory 15 a security print job 75A that includes the password 83, and prints it (S17).

According to this, the accumulated printing job 75B, which does not include the password 83, can be printed by logging in after being accumulated in the memory 15 (accumulated printing). Also, the security printing job 75A, which does include the password 83, can be printed by accepting the input of the password 83 (security printing).

(5. Modifications)
Incidentally, the present specification is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it goes without saying that various improvements and modifications are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present specification .
For example, in the above embodiment, when the user name 85 associated with the print job 75 is not registered in the authentication DB 73 (S49: NO), the CPU 12 determines the print authority of the unregistered user in the authentication DB 73, but the print authority of the unregistered user may not be determined. For example, when the user name 85 is not registered in the authentication DB 73 (S49: NO), the CPU 12 may discard the print job 75 regardless of the print authority of the unregistered user in the authentication DB 73. In this case, the print job 75 set with the user name 85 not registered in the authentication DB 73 is not uniformly saved in the memory 15. This makes it possible to prevent the print job 75 of the unregistered user from being saved in the memory 15 and the storage area of the memory 15 from being unnecessarily consumed.

Furthermore, the authentication information is not limited to numbers such as a PIN number, but may be characters, etc. Furthermore, authentication based on the authentication information may be authentication using information on an authentication card, or biometric authentication such as a fingerprint.
Furthermore, in S59 of FIG. 7, the CPU 12 determines whether or not at least one of the conditions that the user is currently logged in and that the print job 75 is currently being executed is satisfied, but it may determine only one of the conditions.
Furthermore, the CPU 12 may execute a print job 75 for an unregistered user even in a logged-in state.
Furthermore, the CPU 12 may execute the print job 75 of an unregistered user without waiting a certain period of time after printing is completed.
Furthermore, the CPU 12 may execute a process in which, if printing is executed at login, the user is not allowed to log out until printing is completed.
Furthermore, after logging in, MFP 1 may execute printing of stored print job 75B in response to a predetermined operation on touch panel 21.

Furthermore, although the MFP 1 has the touch panel 21 as an operation unit that accepts a login operation, the MFP 1 may be configured to allow the login operation by other methods. For example, the MFP 1 may determine whether to permit the login based on data received from a mobile terminal. The user may enter the user name 85 and the PIN number 113 on the mobile terminal and transmit them to the MFP 1 to perform the login operation. In this case, the communication unit that communicates with the mobile terminal is an example of an operation unit.
In the above embodiment, the CPU 12 that executes a predetermined program is used as the control unit, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the control unit may be configured with dedicated hardware such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). Furthermore, the control unit may be configured to operate using both software processing and hardware processing.
In the above embodiment, the MFP 1, which is a multifunction peripheral, is used as the printing device, but this is not limiting, and the printing device may be a printer device that has only a print function.

1 MFP (printing device), 12 CPU (control unit), 15 memory (storage unit), 16 printing unit, 21 touch panel (operation unit), 24 network interface (communication unit), 73 authentication DB (authentication data), 75 print job, 83 password (authentication information), 85, 111 user name (user identification information), 114 print authority flag (print permission information).

Claims (8)

A storage unit;
The Communications Department and
An operation unit;
Equipped with
a print job associated with user identification information received via the communication unit can be stored in the storage unit for printing;
By accepting a login operation, if a user identified by the login operation is a user registered in an authentication database stored in the storage unit before the login operation is performed, a logged-in state can be entered in which the identified user is logged in as a login user, and if a user identified by the login operation is not a user registered in an authentication database stored in the storage unit before the login operation is performed, the logged-in state can not be entered.
a storage print function that, when the logged-in state is entered, makes it possible to print the print job associated with the user identification information of the logged-in user among the print jobs stored in the storage unit for printing,
When the user identification information associated with the print job received via the communication unit is not registered in the authentication database and the user is in the logged-in state, the print job is not printed, and when the user identification information associated with the print job received via the communication unit is not registered in the authentication database and the user is not in the logged-in state, the print job is printed ,
a print job associated with authentication information received via the communication unit can be stored in the storage unit for printing;
a security printing function that, when the authentication information is input via the operation unit, makes it possible to print the print job associated with the input authentication information among the print jobs stored in the storage unit for printing;
when the print job associated with the user identification information but not associated with the authentication information is received via the communication unit, if the user identification information is registered in the authentication database, storing the print job in the storage unit for printing;
When the print job associated with the user identification information but not associated with the authentication information is received via the communication unit, if the user identification information is not registered in the authentication database, the print job is not printed if the user is in the logged-in state, and the print job is printed if the user is not in the logged-in state;
A printing device configured to, when receiving a print job in which the user identification information and the authentication information are associated via the communication unit, store the print job in the memory unit for printing, regardless of whether the user identification information is registered in the authentication database or not. A storage unit;
The Communications Department and
An operation unit;
Equipped with
a print job associated with user identification information received via the communication unit can be stored in the storage unit for printing;
By accepting a login operation, if a user identified by the login operation is a user registered in an authentication database stored in the storage unit before the login operation is performed, a logged-in state can be entered in which the identified user is logged in as a login user, and if a user identified by the login operation is not a user registered in an authentication database stored in the storage unit before the login operation is performed, the logged-in state can not be entered.
a storage print function that, when the logged-in state is entered, makes it possible to print the print job associated with the user identification information of the logged-in user among the print jobs stored in the storage unit for printing,
When the user identification information associated with the print job received via the communication unit is not registered in the authentication database and the user is in the logged-in state, the print job is not printed, and when the user identification information associated with the print job received via the communication unit is not registered in the authentication database and the user is not in the logged-in state, the print job is printed,
The storage print function may be enabled by accepting an operation to enable the storage print function.
When the stored print function is enabled, when a print job associated with the user identification information is received via the communication unit, if the user identification information is registered in the authentication database, the print job is stored in the storage unit for printing by the stored print function;
When the stored print function is enabled, if a print job associated with the user identification information is received via the communication unit and the user identification information is not registered in the authentication database, the print job is not printed if the user is in the logged-in state, and the print job is printed if the user is not in the logged-in state;
When the accumulated printing function is not enabled, when a print job associated with the user identification information is received via the communication unit, the printing device is configured to print the print job without storing it in the memory unit for printing by the accumulated printing function, even if the user identification information is registered in the authentication database . When the stored print function is not enabled, when the print job associated with the user identification information and authentication information is received via the communication unit, the print job is stored in the storage unit for printing, regardless of whether the user identification information is registered in the authentication database or not;
3. The printing device according to claim 2, wherein when the accumulated printing function is not enabled, when a print job to which the user identification information but not the authentication information is associated is received via the communication unit, the printing device prints the print job without storing it in the memory unit for printing by the accumulated printing function, even if the user identification information is registered in the authentication database . When information indicating that the user has printing authority is registered in the storage unit for the user identification information not registered in the authentication database, if the user identification information associated with the print job received via the communication unit is not registered in the authentication database and the user is in the logged-in state, the print job is not printed, and if the user identification information associated with the print job received via the communication unit is not registered in the authentication database and the user is not in the logged-in state, the print job is printed.
A printing device as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, configured to not print the print job when information indicating that the user has printing authority is not registered in the memory unit for the user identification information that is not registered in the authentication database, regardless of whether the user is in the logged-in state or not . 5. A printing device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: a printing section for printing the print job when the user identification information associated with the print job received via the communication section is not registered in the authentication database and the user is in the logged-in state; and a printing section for printing the print job when the user is no longer in the logged-in state. The printing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the accumulated printing function is configured to automatically print, when the logged-in state is reached, the print jobs stored in the memory unit for printing, which are associated with the user identification information of the logged-in user, from among the print jobs stored in the memory unit for printing. The printing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the accumulated printing function is configured to print, when the logged-in state is reached, the print jobs stored in the memory unit for printing, which are associated with the user identification information of the logged-in user, in response to a specified operation performed via the operation unit after the logged-in state is reached, in accordance with a predetermined operation performed via the operation unit. The printing device of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the accumulated printing function is configured so that, when the logged-in state is entered, if information indicating that the logged-in user has printing authority is registered in the memory unit, it is possible to print the print job stored in the memory unit for printing by the accumulated printing function, which is associated with the user identification information of the logged-in user, and, on the other hand, if information indicating that the logged-in user has printing authority is not registered in the memory unit, it is not possible to print the print job stored in the memory unit for printing by the accumulated printing function, which is associated with the user identification information of the logged-in user.

Images