JP7619920B2 - Equipment management system, equipment management method, and equipment management program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a device management system, a device management method, and a device management program.

Conventionally, systems for managing log information of devices (managed devices) connected to a network are known. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a communication terminal device that transmits log parameter information classified into levels according to the fault content contained in the log information to a server in order to optimize the communication volume and transmission time involved in uploading log information, and uploads log information related to the fault content of the level represented by the log parameter information specified by the log request information to the server based on the log request information transmitted by the server that has received the log parameter information.

JP 2016-177594 A

One method for collecting device log information is for a relay device (device management device) to acquire log information from the device at a preset reference time and transmit the acquired log information to a server. However, this method can cause problems, such as the relay device being unable to acquire the log information if the device is powered off or has a communication problem at the reference time.

Another method for collecting device log information is for a relay device to obtain log information from the device at regular intervals and send the log information to the server each time it is obtained. However, this method increases the frequency with which log information is sent, which creates a problem in that the amount of log information sent and the amount of data stored in the server for managed log information increase.

The object of the present invention is to provide a device management system, a device management method, and a device management program that can appropriately acquire device log information and reduce the amount of data in the log information of the managed devices.

A device management system according to one aspect of the present invention is a device management system that manages managed devices connected to a network, and is a system that includes an acquisition processing unit that acquires log information including operation information and time information from the managed devices at predetermined time intervals, and a selection processing unit that selects, from the log information acquired by the acquisition processing unit, the log information with a time closest to a preset reference time.

A device management method according to another aspect of the present invention is a device management method for managing managed devices connected to a network, in which one or more processors execute an acquisition step of acquiring log information including operation information and time information from the managed devices at predetermined time intervals, and a selection step of selecting, from the log information acquired in the acquisition step, the log information with a time closest to a preset reference time.

A device management program according to another aspect of the present invention is a device management program for managing managed devices connected to a network, and is a program for causing one or more processors to execute an acquisition step of acquiring log information including operation information and time information from the managed devices at predetermined time intervals, and a selection step of selecting, from the log information acquired in the acquisition step, the log information with a time closest to a preset reference time.

The present invention provides a device management system, a device management method, and a device management program that can appropriately acquire device log information and reduce the amount of data in the log information of the managed devices.

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of a device management system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of device information stored in the device management device according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a log database stored in the device management device according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a log management database stored in a cloud server according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the usage status information presented by the cloud server according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure of a device management process executed by the device management system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of log information transmitted and received in the device management system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of log information transmitted and received in the device management system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of log information transmitted and received in the device management system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of a device management system according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the attached drawings. Note that the following embodiment is an example of the present invention and does not limit the technical scope of the present invention.

[Device Management System 100]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a device management system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The device management system 100 includes a device management device 1, an MFP (multifunction printer) 2, and a cloud server 3. The device management system 100 is introduced in a company, a facility, or the like (hereinafter, referred to as a "tenant"). In each tenant, one device management device 1 and one or more MFPs 2 are arranged. In each tenant, the device management device 1 and the MFP 2 are connected to each other via a network N1 (e.g., an in-house LAN). In addition, the device management device 1 of each tenant is connected to a cloud server 3 via a network N2 (e.g., the Internet). In FIG. 1, a tenant 1 and a tenant 2 are illustrated as examples.

The device management system 100 manages MFPs 2 connected to the network N1. The MFPs 2 are an example of devices to be managed in the present invention. In the device management system 100, the device management device 1 acquires log information from the MFPs 2 that it manages, and the cloud server 3 receives and manages specific log information sent from each device management device 1.

The device management device 1 is configured, for example, by a NAS (Network Attached Storage), and acquires log information of the MFP 2 in the tenant. When the device management device 1 acquires log information from each MFP 2, it transmits specific log information to the cloud server 3. The cloud server 3 receives log information from the device management device 1 of each tenant and manages the log information. The cloud server 3 also provides a device management service that presents the usage status (operation status) of the MFP 2 to the tenant (user) based on the log information. For example, the cloud server 3 transmits a report (see FIG. 5) including the usage status information P1 to the tenant PC (user PC). By acquiring the usage status information P1, the user can grasp the usage status of the MFP 2 in the tenant. The device management system 100 is an example of the device management system of the present invention, and the cloud server 3 is an example of the management server of the present invention. Note that the device management system of the present invention may be configured by the device management device 1 alone. In other words, the device management device 1 is an example of the device management system of the present invention.

[Device management device 1]
1, the device management device 1 includes a control unit 11, a storage unit 12, an operation display unit 13, a first communication interface 14a, a second communication interface 14b, etc. The device management device 1 is not limited to a NAS, and may be configured as a personal computer, a server, etc. The device management device 1 is arranged for each tenant. Here, the device management device 1 arranged for the tenant 1 will be described as an example.

The first communication interface 14a is a communication interface for connecting the device management device 1 to the network N1 by wire or wirelessly and for executing data communication with the MFP 2 via the network N1 in accordance with a predetermined communication protocol. The network N1 is, for example, configured as a LAN.

The second communication interface 14b is a communication interface for connecting the device management device 1 to the network N2 in a wired or wireless manner and for executing data communication with the cloud server 3 via the network N2 in accordance with a predetermined communication protocol. The network N2 is, for example, configured as the Internet.

The operation display unit 13 is a user interface that includes a display unit such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display that displays various information, and an operation unit such as a mouse, keyboard, or touch panel that accepts operations.

The storage unit 12 is a non-volatile storage unit such as a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), or a flash memory that stores various types of information. The storage unit 12 stores device information D1 related to the managed devices managed by the device management device 1. The storage unit 12 also includes a log database D2 that stores log information including operation information and time information of the managed devices.

Figure 2 shows an example of device information D1 related to MFP1 and MFP2 located in tenant 1. Device information D1 includes information about managed devices such as device name, IP address, and serial number. Each time a managed device is located (introduced) in tenant 1, the control unit 11 registers information about the managed device in device information D1 based on a registration operation by the user.

Figure 3 shows an example of a log database D2 that stores log information of MFP1. The log database D2 includes information such as acquisition date and time, device information, and print counter value related to MFP1. The acquisition date and time is the date and time (time information) when the device management device 1 acquires log information from MFP1. The device information is device information related to MFP1. The device name is registered in the device information in Figure 3, but in other embodiments, an IP address or serial number may be registered. The print counter value is a count value of a counter (counting counter) mounted on MFP1, and is an example of operation information of the present invention. The operation information may be, for example, the number of printed sheets. The print counter value may also include a color printing counter value (or the number of printed sheets) and a monochrome printing counter value (or the number of printed sheets). The log database D2 may also include a FAX reception counter value, a copy counter value, etc.

The control unit 11 accesses the MFP1 at a predetermined time interval to request log information, acquires the log information from the MFP1, and stores it in the log database D2. For example, the control unit 11 executes a process of accessing the MFP1 at 15-minute intervals (polling process) to acquire log information, and stores the acquired log information in the log database D2. Similarly, the control unit 11 accesses the MFP2 at a predetermined time interval to request log information, acquires the log information from the MFP2, and stores it in the log database D2 (not shown). The time interval may be set to a different interval for each MFP.

Furthermore, as will be described in detail later, the control unit 11 selects specific log information from the log database D2 and transmits it to the cloud server 3. After transmitting the specific log information to the cloud server 3, the control unit 11 deletes the multiple pieces of log information stored in the log database D2.

The storage unit 12 also stores a device management program for causing the control unit 11 to execute a device management process (see FIG. 6) described below. For example, the device management program is non-temporarily recorded on a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD or DVD, and is read by a reading device (not shown) such as a CD drive or DVD drive provided in the device management device 1 and stored in the storage unit 12. The device management program may also be distributed from another server and stored in the storage unit 12.

The control unit 11 has control devices such as a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM. The CPU is a processor that executes various arithmetic operations. The ROM pre-stores control programs such as a BIOS and an OS for causing the CPU to execute various processes. The RAM stores various information and is used as a temporary storage memory (work area) for the various processes executed by the CPU. The control unit 11 controls the device management device 1 by having the CPU execute various control programs pre-stored in the ROM or the memory unit 12.

Specifically, the control unit 11 includes various processing units such as an acquisition processing unit 111, a transmission processing unit 112, and a selection processing unit 113. The control unit 11 functions as the various processing units by executing various processes according to the device management program. Some or all of the processing units included in the control unit 11 may be configured with electronic circuits. The device management program may be a program for causing multiple processors to function as the various processing units.

The acquisition processing unit 111 acquires log information including operation information and time information from the managed device at a predetermined time interval. For example, the acquisition processing unit 111 acquires log information of MFP1 located in tenant 1 at 15-minute intervals. Specifically, the acquisition processing unit 111 executes a process (polling process) of accessing MFP1 at 15-minute intervals to request log information. When MFP1 receives the request from the device management device 1, it transmits the log information (time information, print counter value) at the time of reception to the device management device 1. When the acquisition processing unit 111 acquires the log information from MFP1, it stores it in the log database D2 (see FIG. 3). As a result, log information is accumulated in the log database D2 at 15-minute intervals.

The transmission processing unit 112 transmits specific log information from among the multiple pieces of log information stored in the log database D2 to the cloud server 3. Specifically, the transmission processing unit 112 transmits log information at a preset reference time from among the log information acquired by the acquisition processing unit 111 to the cloud server 3. Here, the reference time is preset by a user (such as an administrator) of the device management device 1. For example, if the user wants to know the daily usage status (operation status) of the managed MFP 1, the user sets the reference time within a 24-hour period. For example, the user sets the reference time to "0:00". As another example, if the user wants to know the monthly usage status of the MFP 1, the user sets "0:00 on the last day of the month" as the reference time within the month.

For example, when log information for "March 1, 2021" is stored in the log database D2 as shown in FIG. 3, the transmission processing unit 112 transmits the log information for the reference time "0:00 (March 2, 2021)" (print counter value "C18") from among the multiple log information to the cloud server 3 as log information for "March 1, 2021". The print counter value "C18" represents the latest count value at the end of "March 1, 2021". Note that the print counter value represents the total number of printed sheets from the past to the present (total count value). Therefore, for example, the number of printed sheets on "March 1, 2021" can be calculated by subtracting the print counter value at "0:00" on the previous day, "March 1, 2021", from the print counter value at "0:00" on "March 2, 2021".

In this way, each time the reference time arrives, the transmission processing unit 112 transmits the log information acquired from the MFP 1 by the acquisition processing unit 111 at the reference time to the cloud server 3. This allows the cloud server 3 to receive log information every day (every 24 hours).

Here, there are cases where the acquisition processing unit 111 cannot acquire log information from the MFP 1 at the reference time. For example, if the power of the MFP 1 is OFF or communication on the network N1 is OFF (or communication is poor) at the reference time, the acquisition processing unit 111 cannot acquire log information from the MFP 1 at the reference time. In this case, the transmission processing unit 112 will not be able to transmit the log information at the reference time to the cloud server 3. Therefore, the control unit 11 executes the following process when log information cannot be acquired from the MFP 1 at the reference time.

Specifically, if the acquisition processing unit 111 cannot acquire log information for the reference time and no log information for the reference time exists in the log database D2, the selection processing unit 113 selects the log information for the time closest to the reference time from among the log information acquired by the acquisition processing unit 111 (log information stored in the log database D2). Then, the transmission processing unit 112 transmits the log information selected by the selection processing unit 113 to the cloud server 3.

The selection processing unit 113 may also execute a first selection process to select log information closest to the reference time from among the log information acquired before the reference time, or may execute a second selection process to select log information closest to the reference time from among the log information acquired before the reference time and the log information acquired after the reference time.

In the case of the first selection process, the selection processing unit 113 selects the log information closest to the reference time (the latest) from among the multiple pieces of log information already stored in the log database D2 at the time when the reference time arrives. In this case, the transmission processing unit 112 transmits the log information selected by the selection processing unit 113 to the cloud server 3 at the time of the reference time. In another embodiment, the transmission processing unit 112 may transmit the log information selected by the selection processing unit 113 to the cloud server 3 at a specified time after the reference time. In other words, the timing at which the transmission processing unit 112 transmits the log information to the cloud server 3 is not limited to the reference time.

In the case of the second selection process, when the reference time arrives, the acquisition processing unit 111 continues the process (polling process) of requesting log information from the MFP 1 for a predetermined time from the reference time. In other words, if the acquisition processing unit 111 does not acquire log information at the reference time, it attempts to acquire log information within a predetermined time from the reference time.

The predetermined time is set, for example, based on the acquisition date and time of log information acquired before the reference time. Specifically, for example, if the acquisition processing unit 111 acquires log information at "March 1, 2021, 23:00" and then does not acquire any log information until the reference time "0:00", the control unit 11 sets the predetermined time to the period from the acquisition date and time of the log information last acquired by the acquisition processing unit 111 to the reference time ("1 hour" in the above example). Then, the acquisition processing unit 111 continues the process of requesting log information from the MFP 1 for only 1 hour from the reference time (until "March 2, 2021, 1:00").

In this way, the acquisition processing unit 111 acquires log information for the immediately preceding time (the first time of the present invention) that is a time before the reference time and closest to the reference time, and if log information for the reference time is not acquired, attempts to acquire log information for the period from the reference time to the immediately preceding time and the reference time.

When the acquisition processing unit 111 acquires log information from the MFP 1 during the period from the reference time, the selection processing unit 113 selects the log information acquired from the log database D2 during the period that is closest to the reference time. The transmission processing unit 112 transmits the log information selected by the selection processing unit 113 to the cloud server 3. In another embodiment, the acquisition processing unit 111 may end the polling process at the time when the log information is acquired for the first time from the MFP 1 during the period from the reference time, and the transmission processing unit 112 may transmit the first acquired log information to the cloud server 3.

In addition, if the acquisition processing unit 111 does not acquire log information from the MFP 1 during the period from the reference time, the selection processing unit 113 selects the most recent log information acquired before the reference time from the log database D2. In the above example, the selection processing unit 113 selects the log information for "March 1, 2021, 23:00". The transmission processing unit 112 transmits the log information for "March 1, 2021, 23:00" selected by the selection processing unit 113 to the cloud server 3. Details of a specific example of the second selection process will be described later in the "Device Management Process".

In this way, the transmission processing unit 112 transmits to the cloud server 3 the log information of the reference time or the log information of the time closest to the reference time among the log information acquired by the acquisition processing unit 111.

The acquisition processing unit 111 acquires log information from MFP1 and MFP2 via a first communication interface 14a that connects to a network N1 (e.g., a LAN). The transmission processing unit 112 transmits the log information to the cloud server 3 via a second communication interface 14b that connects to a network N2 (e.g., the Internet). Network N1 is an example of a first network of the present invention, and network N2 is an example of a second network of the present invention.

When the cloud server 3 receives the log information from the device management device 1, it manages the log information for each managed device. Specifically, the cloud server 3 generates operation status information for the managed devices based on the log information received from the device management device 1.

For example, when the cloud server 3 receives log information of MFP1 from the device management device 1 of the tenant 1 for each day, it stores it in the log management database D3. FIG. 4 shows an example of the log management database D3 that stores the log information of MFP1. The log management database D3 includes information such as date and time information (usage date), device information, and print counter value of the managed device. The usage date is, for example, the date of each day. The print counter value is the print counter value of the log information selected in the device management device 1. The cloud server 3 may store the number of printed sheets for the day calculated based on the print counter value of the previous day in the log management database D3. The cloud server 3 accumulates the log information for each day in the log management database D3.

In addition, the cloud server 3 generates a report (see FIG. 5) showing the usage status information P1 corresponding to the operation status information in response to the user's operation, and presents it to the user. For example, when a user of the device management device 1 of the tenant 1 logs in to the device management service site and sets the usage period (counting period) of the target device "MFP1", the cloud server 3 references the log management database D3 (see FIG. 4) and generates a report (see FIG. 5) showing the usage status information P1 that shows the number of printed sheets per day in the counting period in a graph format. The cloud server 3 calculates the number of printed sheets per usage day based on the print counter value for each usage day. The cloud server 3 then transmits the report to the user's tenant PC (user PC). In the example shown in FIG. 5, the number of printed sheets printed in color and the number of printed sheets printed in monochrome are shown separately.

[Device Management Processing]
An example of the procedure of the device management process executed in the device management system 100 will be described below with reference to FIG.

The present invention can be understood as an invention of a device management method that executes one or more steps included in the device management process. One or more steps included in the device management process described here may be omitted as appropriate. The steps in the device management process may be executed in a different order as long as the same action and effect is achieved. Furthermore, although an example is described here in which the control unit 11 of the device management device 1 executes each step in the device management process, in other embodiments, one or more processors may execute each step in the device management process in a distributed manner.

As shown in the above example, the device management device 1 acquires and manages log information of the MFP 1 located in the tenant 1. The device management devices 1 located in each tenant individually execute the device management process in parallel.

The control unit 11 starts the device management process, for example, when the power of the device management device 1 is turned on and the managed device (MFP 1) becomes accessible.

In step S1, the control unit 11 determines whether it is time to acquire the log information of MFP1. For example, the control unit 11 pre-sets the time interval (period) for acquiring the log information of MFP1 to be 15 minutes. The control unit 11 determines whether 15 minutes have passed. If it is time to acquire the log information of MFP1 (S1: Yes), the process proceeds to step S2. The control unit 11 waits until it is time to acquire the log information of MFP1 (S1: No).

In step S2, the control unit 11 executes a process to acquire log information of the MFP 1. Specifically, the control unit 11 requests the MFP 1 to send log information (polling process).

Next, in step S3, the control unit 11 determines whether or not log information has been acquired from the MFP 1. If the control unit 11 has acquired log information from the MFP 1 (S3: Yes), the process proceeds to step S4. On the other hand, if the control unit 11 has not acquired log information from the MFP 1 (S3: No), the process proceeds to step S31.

In step S31, the control unit 11 determines whether the reference time has arrived. For example, the control unit 11 sets the reference time to "0:00". If the reference time has arrived (S31: Yes), the control unit 11 in step S32 sends information indicating that log information could not be acquired ("No log information") to the cloud server 3. If the reference time has not arrived (S31: No), the process returns to step S1, and the control unit 11 repeats the above-mentioned process.

In step S4, the control unit 11 stores the acquired log information in the log database D2 (see FIG. 3).

Next, in step S5, the control unit 11 determines whether the reference time has arrived. If the reference time has arrived (S5: Yes), the process proceeds to step S6. If the reference time has not arrived (S5: No), the process returns to step S1, and the control unit 11 repeats the above-mentioned process. In this way, the control unit 11 repeats the process of acquiring log information at a predetermined time interval until the reference time arrives.

In step S6, the control unit 11 determines whether or not log information for the reference time has been acquired from the MFP 1. If the control unit 11 has acquired log information for the reference time from the MFP 1 (S6: Yes), the process proceeds to step S7. On the other hand, if the control unit 11 has not acquired log information for the reference time from the MFP 1 (S6: No), the process proceeds to step S61.

Figure 7 illustrates an example of a case in which the control unit 11 acquires log information for the reference time. In this case, the control unit 11 continues to acquire log information Ca to Cf from the MFP 1 at 15-minute intervals until the reference time reaches "0:00" ("March 2, 2021"), and acquires log information Cg for the reference time when the reference time reaches "0:00".

When the control unit 11 acquires the log information Cg for the reference time (S6: Yes), in step S7, the control unit 11 transmits the log information Cg for the reference time to the cloud server 3 (see FIG. 7). When the cloud server 3 receives the log information Cg from the device management device 1, it stores it in the log management database D3 (see FIG. 4) as log information for "March 1, 2021" (corresponding to "C1" in FIG. 4).

When the control unit 11 sends the log information Cg to the cloud server 3, it deletes the log information for "March 1, 2021" stored in the log database D2.

On the other hand, if the control unit 11 is unable to acquire log information for the reference time from the MFP 1 (S6: No), the control unit 11 identifies the acquisition time (immediately preceding time) of the last acquired log information in step S61.

Figure 8 illustrates an example of a case where the control unit 11 is unable to obtain log information at the reference time. In this case, the control unit 11 has not been able to obtain log information from the MFP 1 until the reference time of "0:00" ("March 2, 2021") since obtaining log information Cc from the MFP 1 at "23:00". In this case, the control unit 11 identifies the time of obtaining the last obtained log information Cc, "23:00" (the immediately preceding time).

Next, in step S62, the control unit 11 continues the process of acquiring log information of the MFP1. Specifically, the control unit 11 attempts to acquire log information from the reference time "0:00" for a period N (N = 1 hour) between the immediately preceding time "23:00" and the reference time "0:00". In other words, the control unit 11 continues the polling process from 0:00 to 1:00 (see Figure 8).

Next, in step S63, the control unit 11 determines whether or not log information has been acquired from the MFP 1 during the period N. If the control unit 11 has acquired log information from the MFP 1 during the period N (S63: Yes), the process proceeds to step S64. On the other hand, if the control unit 11 has not acquired log information from the MFP 1 during the period N (S63: No), the process proceeds to step S71.

In step S64, the control unit 11 transmits the log information acquired during the period N to the cloud server 3. For example, the control unit 11 selects the log information Ci that is closest to the reference time from among the log information acquired during the period N, and transmits it to the cloud server 3 (see FIG. 8). When the cloud server 3 receives the log information Ci from the device management device 1, it stores it in the log management database D3 (see FIG. 4) as log information for "March 1, 2021" (corresponding to "C1" in FIG. 4). Note that the control unit 11 may end the polling process for the period N at the time when the first log information is acquired during the period N (here, one hour) ("0:30" in FIG. 8).

When the control unit 11 sends the log information Ci to the cloud server 3, it deletes the log information for "March 1, 2021" stored in the log database D2.

In contrast, if the control unit 11 is unable to obtain log information from the MFP 1 (S63: No), the control unit 11 determines in step S71 whether the period N has elapsed since the reference time. If the period N has elapsed since the reference time (S71: Yes), the process proceeds to step S72. On the other hand, if the period N has not elapsed since the reference time (S71: No), the process returns to step S62.

In step S72, the control unit 11 transmits the log information acquired at the immediately preceding time to the cloud server 3.

9 illustrates a case in which the control unit 11 is unable to obtain log information from the MFP 1 during the period N from the reference time. In this case, the control unit 11 is unable to obtain log information from the MFP 1 until the reference time "0:00" after the log information Cc is obtained from the MFP 1 at "23:00", and is unable to obtain log information from the MFP 1 until "1:00" after the period N (1 hour) has elapsed since the reference time "0:00". In this case, the log information Cc of the immediately preceding time ("23:00") is the log information closest to the reference time, so the control unit 11 selects the log information Cc of the immediately preceding time and transmits it to the cloud server 3. When the cloud server 3 receives the log information Cc from the device management device 1, it stores it in the log management database D3 (see FIG. 4) as log information for "March 1, 2021" (corresponding to "C1" in FIG. 4).

When the control unit 11 sends the log information Cc to the cloud server 3, it deletes the log information for "March 1, 2021" stored in the log database D2.

After each of the processes of steps S7, S32, S64, and S72, the control unit 11 returns to step S1 and repeats the above-mentioned processes. In this way, the control unit 11 acquires log information from the MFP 1 at a predetermined time interval, and each time the reference time arrives, selects specific log information corresponding to the reference time and transmits it to the cloud server 3. The cloud server 3 presents the usage status of the MFP 1 for a predetermined period (see FIG. 5) to the user based on the log information received from the device management device 1.

As described above, the device management system 100 according to this embodiment acquires log information including operation information and time information from the managed devices at a predetermined time interval, and transmits, from among the acquired log information, log information at a preset reference time or log information at a time closest to the reference time to the cloud server 3.

According to the above configuration, among the multiple pieces of log information acquired at a predetermined time interval, only the log information at the reference time can be transmitted to the cloud server 3, so that the amount of transmitted data of the log information and the amount of stored data of the log information of the managed device in the cloud server 3 can be reduced. Also, for example, even if the power of the managed device is OFF or there is a communication failure at the reference time, log information close to the reference time can be transmitted to the cloud server 3.

This makes it possible to properly acquire log information from managed devices and reduce the amount of data in the managed device log information.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. The present invention may be embodied as follows:

In the above embodiment, the control unit 11 sets the period N to be the period from the acquisition time (the immediately preceding time) of the last log information acquired before the reference time "0:00" to the reference time. In this configuration, for example, if the immediately preceding time is "10:00" (March 1, 2021), the period N is "14 hours", so the control unit 11 continues the polling process from the reference time "0:00" to "14:00" (March 2, 2021). In this case, for example, the log information acquired from the MFP 1 at "13:00" (March 2, 2021) is far from the reference time "0:00", and it cannot be said that it is appropriate to use the log information as the usage record for March 1, 2021. Therefore, the control unit 11 may set an upper limit time for the period N. For example, the control unit 11 sets the upper limit of the period N to "11 hours".

As a result, for example, if the control unit 11 is unable to obtain log information from the MFP 1 within the time period from the reference time "0:00" until "11 hours" have elapsed, the control unit 11 ends the polling process and transmits the log information obtained immediately before that time to the cloud server 3.

In another embodiment, the control unit 11 may be configured not to transmit the log information to the cloud server 3 if the acquisition time of the log information closest to the reference time is a predetermined time or more away from the reference time. For example, if the acquisition time of the log information closest to the reference time "0:00" (March 2, 2021) "10:00" (March 1, 2021) is a predetermined time or more away from the reference time (e.g., "12 hours"), the control unit 11 may not transmit the log information to the cloud server 3, but may transmit "no log information" to the cloud server 3.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the control unit 11 of the device management device 1 may transmit log information to the cloud server 3 at a preset transmission time. For example, the control unit 11 sets the transmission time to "12:00" the following day. In this case, for example, when it becomes "12:00" on "March 2, 2021", the control unit 11 transmits log information for the reference time "0:00" corresponding to the MFP 1 or log information for the time closest to the reference time as log information for "March 1, 2021" to the cloud server 3.

In another embodiment of the present invention, for example, the device management device 1 corresponding to tenant 1 may transmit log information of MFP1 arranged in tenant 1 and log information of MFP2 arranged in tenant 1 together to the cloud server 3. For example, the control unit 11 may set in advance a transmission time for transmitting the log information of MFP1 and the log information of MFP2 to the cloud server 3. Then, when the transmission time arrives, the control unit 11 transmits the log information of the reference time or the log information of the time closest to the reference time corresponding to MFP1 together with the log information of the reference time or the log information of the time closest to the reference time corresponding to MFP2 to the cloud server 3. This reduces the frequency of transmission from the device management device 1 to the cloud server 3.

As another embodiment of the present invention, the cloud server 3 may acquire log information including operation information and time information from the device management device 1 at a predetermined time interval, and select the log information with the time closest to a preset reference time from the acquired log information. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10, the cloud server 3 includes a control unit 31, a storage unit 32, and a communication interface 33, and the control unit 31 includes an acquisition processing unit 311 and a selection processing unit 312. The acquisition processing unit 311 has a function equivalent to the acquisition processing unit 111 of the device management device 1, and acquires log information including operation information and time information from the device management device 1 at a predetermined time interval. The selection processing unit 312 has a function equivalent to the selection processing unit 113 of the device management device 1, and selects the log information with the time closest to a preset reference time from the log information acquired by the acquisition processing unit 311. The selection processing unit 312 stores the selected specific log information in the storage unit 32, and manages the log information for each managed device. In addition, the control unit 31 generates operation status information (see FIG. 5) for the managed device based on the specific log information selected by the selection processing unit 312.

Even in the above configuration, the amount of data stored in the log information of the managed devices in the cloud server 3 can be reduced. Note that in the configuration shown in FIG. 10, the selection processing unit 113 may be omitted from the device management device 1. Also, in the configuration shown in FIG. 10, the device management device 1 may be a well-known configuration (a well-known relay device).

The cloud server 3 shown in FIG. 10 is an example of a device management system of the present invention. In this way, the device management system of the present invention may be configured with a device management device 1 alone (see FIG. 1), or may be configured with a cloud server 3 (management server) alone (see FIG. 10).

In the above embodiment, an MFP is given as an example of a device to be managed according to the present invention, but the device to be managed according to the present invention is not limited to an MFP and may be other devices. For example, the device to be managed may be a digital signage display. In this case, the control unit 11 acquires information on the displayed content (programs, advertisements, etc.) (e.g., the number of times the content has been played), information on the user's touch operation (e.g., the number of times the display has been touched), and the like, as log information, from the digital signage display. The device to be managed may also be a surveillance camera device. For example, the control unit 11 acquires information on objects (vehicles, smartphones, people, animals, etc.) that have passed through a surveillance area (e.g., the number of passes), as log information, from the surveillance camera device. In this way, various types of devices to be managed can be applied to the device management system of the present invention.

1: Device management device 2: MFP (managed device)
3: Cloud server (management server)
11: Control unit 14a: First communication interface 14b: Second communication interface 100: Equipment management system 111: Acquisition processing unit 112: Transmission processing unit 113: Selection processing unit D1: Equipment information D2: Log database D3: Log management database N1: Network N2: Network P1: Usage status information

Claims (9)

A device management system for managing managed devices connected to a network,
an acquisition processing unit that acquires log information including operation information and time information from the managed device at a predetermined time interval;
a selection processing unit that selects, from the log information acquired by the acquisition processing unit, the log information having a time closest to a preset reference time;
a transmission processing unit that transmits to a management server the log information having a time closest to the reference time selected by the selection processing unit ;
Equipped with
the acquisition processing unit acquires the log information for a first time that is a time earlier than the reference time and closest to the reference time, and if the log information for the reference time has not been acquired, attempts to acquire the log information for a period from the reference time to the first time.
Equipment management system. when the log information for the reference time does not exist, the transmission processing unit transmits the log information for the time closest to the reference time to the management server.
The device management system according to claim 1 . When the acquisition processing unit acquires the log information during the period from the reference time, the transmission processing unit transmits to the management server the log information that is closest to the reference time among the log information acquired during the period.
The device management system according to claim 1 or 2 . When the acquisition processing unit has not acquired the log information during the period from the reference time, the transmission processing unit transmits the log information at the first time to the management server.
The device management system according to any one of claims 1 to 3 . The acquisition processing unit acquires the log information from the managed device via a first communication interface connected to a first network,
the transmission processing unit transmits the log information to the management server via a second communication interface connected to a second network different from the first network;
The device management system according to any one of claims 1 to 4 . The first network is a LAN and the second network is the Internet.
The device management system according to claim 5 . the management server generates operation status information of the device to be managed based on the log information transmitted from the transmission processing unit.
The device management system according to any one of claims 1 to 6 . A device management method for managing a management target device connected to a network, comprising:
One or more processors
an acquisition step of acquiring log information including operation information and time information from the managed device at a predetermined time interval;
a selection step of selecting, from the log information acquired in the acquisition step, the log information having a time closest to a preset reference time;
a transmission step of transmitting to a management server the log information having a time closest to the reference time selected in the selection step ;
Run
an acquisition step of the device management method, in which the log information for a first time that is earlier than the reference time and closest to the reference time is acquired, and if the log information for the reference time is not acquired, an attempt is made to acquire the log information for the period from the reference time to the first time . A device management program for managing a management target device connected to a network,
an acquisition step of acquiring log information including operation information and time information from the managed device at a predetermined time interval;
a selection step of selecting, from the log information acquired in the acquisition step, the log information having a time closest to a preset reference time;
a transmission step of transmitting to a management server the log information having a time closest to the reference time selected in the selection step ;
on one or more processors ,
an apparatus management program, in which in the acquisition step, the log information for a first time that is a time earlier than the reference time and closest to the reference time is acquired, and if the log information for the reference time is not acquired, an attempt is made to acquire the log information for the period from the reference time to the first time .