JP7772586B2 - 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 that manage the logs of devices connected to a network (managed devices) are known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). For example, a system is known in which a display, which is a managed device, has a built-in dedicated circuit for communicating with a management server, and the dedicated circuit sends the log to the management server.

JP 2009-265884 A

However, in conventional systems, only displays equipped with dedicated circuits can be managed, meaning that logs can only be managed for specific displays. Furthermore, the need for dedicated circuits makes the display structure more complex and expensive.

The object of the present invention is to provide a device management system, device management method, and device management program that can manage logs of managed devices with a simple configuration.

One aspect of the present invention is a device management system that manages multiple device management devices, each connected to at least one managed device. The system includes an acquisition processing unit that acquires logs from each of the multiple device management devices, including device information about the managed devices and usage status information about the managed devices, and a presentation processing unit that presents the results of compiling the logs acquired by the acquisition processing unit.

A device management method according to another aspect of the present invention is a device management method for managing multiple device management devices, each of which is connected to at least one managed device, in which one or more processors execute an acquisition step of acquiring, from each of the multiple device management devices, a log containing device information about the managed devices and usage status information about the managed devices, and a presentation step of presenting an aggregation result obtained by aggregating the logs acquired in the acquisition step.

A device management program according to another aspect of the present invention is a device management program for managing multiple device management devices, each of which is connected to at least one managed device, and is a program for causing one or more processors to execute an acquisition step for acquiring, from each of the multiple device management devices, a log containing device information about the managed devices and usage status information about the managed devices, and a presentation step for presenting an aggregation result obtained by aggregating the logs acquired in the acquisition step.

The present invention provides a device management system, device management method, and device management program that can manage logs of managed devices with a simple configuration.

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 log information according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of installation location information according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of log management information according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen displayed on the operation terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a report displayed on the operation terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen displayed on the operation terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a report displayed on the operation terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen displayed on the operation terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a report displayed on the operation terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen displayed on the operation terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a report displayed on the operation terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the procedure of the device management process executed by the device management apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure of a device management process executed by the management server and the operation terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 15 is a diagram showing the configuration of a device management system according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the following embodiments are merely examples of embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the technical scope of the present invention.

[Device Management System 10]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a device management system 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The device management system 10 includes a display DP to be managed, a device management device 1 connected to the display DP via a network, a management server 2 connected to the device management device 1 via a network, and an operation terminal 3 connected to the management server 2 via a network. The device management system 10 is installed in a company, facility, or the like. The device management system 10 includes multiple device management devices 1 and at least one display DP connected to each device management device 1. For example, as shown in FIG. 1 , a device management device 1A and a display DP1 connected to the device management device 1A are arranged in a conference room 1, and a device management device 1B and displays DP2 and DP3 connected to the device management device 1B are arranged in a conference room 2. The display DP is a general-purpose display connected to the device management device 1 via a cable, for example, and displays images according to commands from the device management device 1.

The device management system 10 manages the logs of each display DP. A display DP is an example of a managed device of the present invention. In the device management system 10, the device management device 1 acquires logs containing device information and usage status information from the display DP that it manages, and the management server 2 receives and manages the logs sent from each device management device 1. In addition, in response to a request from the operation terminal 3, the management server 2 presents a report showing the log aggregation results to the operation terminal 3.

Specifically, the device management device 1 is configured as, for example, a personal computer, and acquires device information and the like from the display DP connected to the device management device 1. The device management device 1 also saves a log corresponding to the device information acquired from the display DP and transmits the saved log to the management server 2. The management server 2 receives and manages logs from each device management device 1. The management server 2 also provides a device management service that presents the user with information such as the usage status of the display DP corresponding to the log. For example, the management server 2 sends a report (see FIG. 6, etc.) including usage status information to the operation terminal 3 (user PC). The user can understand the usage status of the display DP from the usage status report displayed on the operation terminal 3. The device management system 10 is an example of a device management system of the present invention. Note that the device management system of the present invention may be configured as either the device management device 1 alone or the management server 2 alone.

[Equipment management device 1]
1, the device management device 1 includes a control unit 11, a storage unit 12, an operation display unit 13, and a communication interface 14. Fig. 1 illustrates a device management device 1A installed in conference room 1 and a device management device 1B installed in conference room 2. Each of the multiple device management devices 1 is a personal computer with a common configuration.

The communication interface 14 is a communication interface that connects the device management device 1 to a network (e.g., a LAN) via a wired connection and performs data communication with the display DP via the network in accordance with a predetermined communication protocol. The communication interface 14 is also a communication interface that connects the device management device 1 to a network (e.g., the Internet) via a wired or wireless connection and performs data communication with the management server 2 via the network in accordance with a predetermined communication protocol.

The operation display unit 13 is a user interface that includes a display unit such as a liquid crystal display or 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), solid state drive (SSD), or flash memory that stores various types of information. The storage unit 12 stores log information D1 that includes device information related to the display DP and usage status information for the display DP.

Figure 2 shows an example of log information D1 (log 1) corresponding to display DP1. Log information D1 includes device information such as the model name, identifier, installation location, display resolution, and physical size of display DP1, as well as connection information (usage status information) including the connection start time when the connection between display DP1 and device management device 1A was initiated, the connection end time when the connection between display DP1 and device management device 1A was ended, and the connection time between display DP1 and device management device 1A. When the control unit 11 obtains the device information and connection information from display DP, it saves them in log information D1.

The storage unit 12 also stores a device management program for causing the control unit 11 to execute the device management process (see FIG. 13) 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, ROM, and RAM. The CPU is a processor that executes various types of arithmetic operations. The ROM pre-stores control programs such as the BIOS and OS that cause the CPU to execute various processes. The RAM stores various types of information and is used as 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 memory unit 12.

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

The acquisition processing unit 111 acquires device information related to the display DP from the display DP. For example, the acquisition processing unit 111 of the device management device 1A installed in conference room 1 acquires device information related to the display DP1 from the display DP1 connected to the device management device 1A. Furthermore, the acquisition processing unit 111 of the device management device 1B installed in conference room 2 acquires device information related to the display DP2 and device information related to the display DP3 from the displays DP2 and DP3 connected to the device management device 1B, respectively. For example, when the device management device 1 to which the display DP is connected is powered on, the acquisition processing unit 111 acquires the device information from the display DP.

The device information includes information specific to the display DP, such as the model name, identifier, display resolution, and physical size of the display DP. The acquisition processing unit 111 saves the acquired device information in log information D1 (see Figure 2).

Furthermore, when the connection status of the display DP changes, the acquisition processing unit 111 saves usage status information of the display DP in log information D1. For example, when the device management device 1 to which the display DP is connected is turned on or when a user logs in, the acquisition processing unit 111 acquires information about the date and time at that time and saves it as the connection start time in log information D1 (see FIG. 2). For example, when the device management device 1 to which the display DP is connected is turned off or when a user logs out, the acquisition processing unit 111 acquires information about the date and time at that time and saves it as the connection end time in log information D1 (see FIG. 2). The acquisition processing unit 111 also calculates the time from the connection start time to the connection end time and saves it as the connection time in log information D1 (see FIG. 2). In another embodiment, when the display DP connected to the device management device 1 is replaced, the acquisition processing unit 111 may save the device information and usage status information in log information D1.

The acquisition processing unit 111 also references installation location information D2 (see FIG. 3) and saves installation location information associated with the device management device 1 in log information D1. For example, a device management device 1A installed in conference room 1 saves information about "conference room 1" in log 1 (see FIG. 2) corresponding to display DP1. Installation location information is associated with and registered in advance for each device management device 1 in installation location information D2. For example, when installing the device management device 1, the administrator of the device management device 1 registers the installation location in installation location information D2. Note that installation location information D2 may be stored in each device management device 1 or in the management server 2.

In this way, the acquisition processing unit 111 acquires device information about the display DP connected to the device management device 1, and also acquires usage status information in response to changes in the connection status of the display DP, saving this information as a log for that display DP. The acquisition processing unit 111 is an example of an acquisition processing unit of the present invention.

The transmission processing unit 112 transmits the stored log to the management server 2 at a predetermined timing. For example, the transmission processing unit 112 transmits the log to the management server 2 when the device management device 1 is logged out, shut down, or when the date changes.

The transmission processing unit 112 of the device management device 1A transmits log 1 (see FIG. 2) corresponding to display DP1 to the management server 2, and the transmission processing unit 112 of the device management device 1B transmits log 2 corresponding to display DP2 and log 3 corresponding to display DP3 to the management server 2. The timing of transmitting the logs may be set differently for each device management device 1.

As described above, each device management device 1 repeatedly acquires (saves) the log of the display DP connected to the device itself and transmits the saved log to the management server 2 at a predetermined timing. Furthermore, each device management device 1 saves the log when the connection status of the display DP connected to the device management device 1 changes, and transmits the saved log to the management server 2 at a predetermined timing.

[Management Server 2]
1, the management server 2 includes a control unit 21, a storage unit 22, an operation display unit 23, and a communication interface 24. The management server 2 may be configured as a cloud server or a physical server.

The communication interface 24 is a communication interface that connects the management server 2 to a network (e.g., the Internet) via a wired or wireless connection, and performs data communication between the device management device 1 and the operation terminal 3 via the network in accordance with a specified communication protocol.

The operation display unit 23 is a user interface that includes a display unit such as a liquid crystal display or organic EL display that displays various information, and an operation unit such as a mouse, keyboard, or touch panel that accepts operations.

The memory unit 22 is a non-volatile memory unit such as an HDD, SSD, or flash memory that stores various types of information. The memory unit 22 stores logs (see Figure 2) acquired from each device management device 1.

The storage unit 22 also stores a device management program for causing the control unit 21 to execute the device management process (see FIG. 14) 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 on the management server 2 and stored in the storage unit 22. The device management program may also be distributed from another server and stored in the storage unit 22.

The control unit 21 has control devices such as a CPU, ROM, and RAM. The CPU is a processor that executes various types of arithmetic operations. The ROM pre-stores control programs such as the BIOS and OS that cause the CPU to execute various processes. The RAM stores various types of information and is used as temporary storage memory (work area) for the various processes executed by the CPU. The control unit 21 controls the management server 2 by having the CPU execute various control programs pre-stored in the ROM or memory unit 22.

Specifically, the control unit 21 includes various processing units such as an acquisition processing unit 211 and a presentation processing unit 212. The control unit 21 functions as the various processing units by executing various processes in accordance with the device management program. Some or all of the processing units included in the control unit 21 may be configured as electronic circuits. The device management program may be a program that causes multiple processors to function as the various processing units.

The acquisition processing unit 211 acquires a log containing device information related to the display DP and usage status information for the display DP from each of the multiple device management devices 1. The acquisition processing unit 211 is an example of an acquisition processing unit of the present invention.

For example, the acquisition processing unit 211 acquires log 1 corresponding to display DP1 from device management device 1A, and acquires log 2 corresponding to display DP2 and log 3 corresponding to display DP3 from device management device 1B. For each log acquired from each device management device 1, the acquisition processing unit 211 stores log management information D3 (see Figure 4) that associates the log with the identification information of the device management device 1 in the storage unit 22. In the example shown in Figure 4, "PC1A" refers to device management device 1A in Figure 1, and "PC1B" refers to device management device 1B in Figure 1.

The presentation processing unit 212 presents the results of aggregating the acquired logs. Specifically, when the presentation processing unit 212 receives a request from the operation terminal 3 for information (report information) regarding a report (aggregation report) corresponding to the log aggregation results, the presentation processing unit 212 transmits the report information to the operation terminal 3. Furthermore, when the presentation processing unit 212 receives the request, it displays the report on the operation terminal 3. The presentation processing unit 212 is an example of a presentation processing unit of the present invention.

For example, when a user (administrator) of the operation terminal 3 wants to know the usage status of a specific display DP, the user selects the target display DP on the operation terminal 3 (see Figure 5). When the operation terminal 3 sends information (search criteria) about the selected display DP (e.g., display DP1) to the management server 2, the presentation processing unit 212 searches for log 1 for display DP1 from the logs stored in the memory unit 22 and sends it to the operation terminal 3 as report information. The operation terminal 3 displays a report (see Figure 6) based on the report information obtained from the management server 2. Specific examples of the report will be described later.

[Operation terminal 3]
1 , the operation terminal 3 includes a control unit 31, a storage unit 32, an operation display unit 33, a communication interface 34, etc. The operation terminal 3 is a personal computer, a smartphone, etc. The operation terminal 3 may be the device management device 1. In other words, the device management device 1 may have the functions of the operation terminal 3.

The communication interface 34 is a communication interface that connects the operation terminal 3 to a network (e.g., the Internet) via a wired or wireless connection, and performs data communication with the management server 2 via the network in accordance with a specified communication protocol.

The operation display unit 33 is a user interface that includes a display unit such as an LCD display or organic EL display that displays various information, and an operation unit such as a mouse, keyboard, or touch panel that accepts operations.

The memory unit 32 is a non-volatile memory unit such as an HDD, SSD, or flash memory that stores various types of information. The memory unit 32 stores the report information obtained from the management server 2.

The storage unit 32 also stores a device management program for causing the control unit 31 to execute the device management process (see FIG. 14) 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 operation terminal 3 and stored in the storage unit 32. The device management program may also be distributed from another server and stored in the storage unit 32.

The control unit 31 has control devices such as a CPU, ROM, and RAM. The CPU is a processor that executes various types of arithmetic operations. The ROM pre-stores control programs such as the BIOS and OS that cause the CPU to execute various processes. The RAM stores various types of information and is used as temporary storage memory (work area) for the various processes executed by the CPU. The control unit 31 controls the operation terminal 3 by having the CPU execute various control programs pre-stored in the ROM or memory unit 32.

In addition, an application for displaying the report may be installed in the memory unit 32, and the control unit 31 may execute the application to display the report on the operation display unit 33. Alternatively, the application may be stored on the management server 2, and the control unit 31 may access the management server 2 via browser processing to execute the application.

Specifically, the control unit 31 includes various processing units such as an acquisition processing unit 311 and a display processing unit 312. The control unit 31 functions as the various processing units by executing various processes in accordance with the device management program. Some or all of the processing units included in the control unit 31 may be configured as electronic circuits. The device management program may be a program that causes multiple processors to function as the various processing units.

The acquisition processing unit 311 acquires report information sent from the management server 2. For example, a user of the operation terminal 3 selects the display DP to be aggregated (e.g., display DP1) as a search condition on the operation screen P1 (see FIG. 5) displayed on the operation terminal 3, and presses the "Display" button. When the control unit 31 accepts the user's search conditions, it sends a request for report information related to display DP1 to the management server 2. Based on the search conditions, the management server 2 searches for log 1 for display DP1 from the logs stored in the memory unit 22 and sends it to the operation terminal 3 as report information. The acquisition processing unit 311 acquires the report information from the management server 2.

The display processing unit 312 presents the results of aggregating logs corresponding to the report information. Specifically, the display processing unit 312 displays a report based on the report information. The display processing unit 312 is an example of a presentation processing unit of the present invention.

In the above example, the display processing unit 312 displays the report shown in FIG. 6. For example, the display processing unit 312 displays a report including the date of use of display DP1, the start time of use, the end time of use, and information about the connected PC (device management device 1). In this way, when the presentation processing unit 212 of the management server 2 receives a request for the tally results corresponding to the first display DP out of multiple displays DP from the operation terminal 3, it causes the operation terminal 3 to display the tally results (report) including information about the date and time the first display DP was used and identification information of the device management device 1 to which the first display DP is connected. The presentation processing unit 212 also causes the operation terminal 3 to display information about the installation location where the display DP is installed. This allows the user to understand the daily usage status of display DP1.

In another embodiment, the user selects the date to be aggregated (e.g., "December 1, 2012") as a search condition on the operation screen P3 (see FIG. 7) displayed on the operation terminal 3 and presses the "Display" button. Upon receiving the user's search condition, the control unit 31 sends a request for report information related to "December 1, 2012" to the management server 2. Based on the search condition, the management server 2 searches for logs for "December 1, 2012" from the logs stored in the memory unit 22 and sends the search results to the operation terminal 3 as report information. The acquisition processing unit 311 acquires the report information from the management server 2.

In this case, as shown in FIG. 8, the display processing unit 312 displays a report including information about the start and end times of use, installation locations, and connected PCs (device management devices 1) for each of the displays DP1 to DP4 on December 1, 2012. In this way, when the presentation processing unit 212 of the management server 2 receives a request for tally results corresponding to a specific day from the operation terminal 3, it causes the operation terminal 3 to display tally results (reports) including information about the time periods used on the specific day for each of the multiple displays DP and the identification information of the device management device 1 to which the display DP is connected. The presentation processing unit 212 also causes the operation terminal 3 to display information about the installation locations where the displays DP are installed. This allows the user to understand the usage status of each display DP on the target day.

In another embodiment, the user selects the target device management device 1 (e.g., "PC1A") as a search condition on the operation screen P5 (see FIG. 9) displayed on the operation terminal 3 and presses the "Display" button. When the control unit 31 accepts the user's search conditions, it sends a request for report information related to "PC1A" (device management device 1A) to the management server 2. Based on the search conditions, the management server 2 searches for logs for "PC1A" (device management device 1A) from the logs stored in the memory unit 22 and sends the logs to the operation terminal 3 as report information. The acquisition processing unit 311 acquires the report information from the management server 2.

In this case, as shown in FIG. 10, the display processing unit 312 displays a report including information about the date of use, start time of use, end time of use, connected display, and installation location of "PC1A." In this way, when the presentation processing unit 212 of the management server 2 receives a request for tally results corresponding to a first device management device among multiple device management devices 1 from the operation terminal 3, it causes the operation terminal 3 to display tally results (report) including information about the date and time the display DP was used and information about the installation location where the display DP is installed, for each of at least one display DP connected to the first device management device. This allows the user to understand the usage status of the device management device 1 and the display DP connected to that device management device 1.

In another embodiment, the user selects the display DP to be aggregated (e.g., display DP1) and the device management device 1 (e.g., "PC1A") as search conditions on the operation screen P7 (see FIG. 11) displayed on the operation terminal 3, and presses the "Display" button. Upon receiving the user's search conditions, the control unit 31 sends a request for report information regarding the display DP1 and "PC1A" (device management device 1A) to the management server 2. Based on the search conditions, the management server 2 searches the logs stored in the memory unit 22 for the logs of the display DP1 and "PC1A" (device management device 1A) and sends the logs to the operation terminal 3 as report information. The acquisition processing unit 311 acquires the report information from the management server 2.

In this case, the display processing unit 312 displays a report including information about the date of use, start time of use, and end time of use of the display DP1 connected to "PC1A," as shown in FIG. 12. This allows the user to understand the usage status of the display DP connected to a specific device management device 1.

[Device Management Processing]
13 and 14, an example of the procedure of the device management process executed in the device management system 10 will be described. Fig. 13 shows an example of the procedure of the device management process executed in the device management device 1, and Fig. 14 shows an example of the procedure of the device management process executed in the management server 2 and the operation terminal 3.

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 effects are achieved. While the description here uses as an example a case where the control unit 11 of the device management device 1, the control unit 21 of the management server 2, and the control unit 31 of the operation terminal 3 execute the steps in the device management process, in other embodiments, one or more processors may execute the steps in the device management process in a distributed manner.

First, with reference to Figure 13, we will explain an example of the steps of the device management process executed by the device management device 1.

In step S1, the control unit 11 of the device management device 1 acquires device information from a display DP connected to the device management device 1. For example, when the device management device 1 to which a display DP is connected is powered on, the control unit 11 acquires specific information from the display DP, such as the model name, identifier, display resolution, and physical size of the display DP. The control unit 11 saves the acquired device information in log information D1 (see Figure 2).

Next, in step S2, the control unit 11 determines whether the connection status of the display DP has changed. For example, the control unit 11 determines that the connection status of the display DP has changed when the display DP is connected to the device management device 1, when the power of the display DP or the power of the device management device 1 to which the display DP is connected is turned on, when a user logs in, when the display DP is disconnected from the device management device 1, when the power of the display DP or the power of the device management device 1 to which the display DP is connected is turned off, when a user logs out, etc. If the control unit 11 determines that the connection status of the display DP has changed (S2: Yes), it proceeds to step S3. On the other hand, if the control unit 11 determines that the connection status of the display DP has not changed (S2: No), it proceeds to step S4.

In step S3, the control unit 11 saves information about changes in the connection status of the display DP in log information D1 (see Figure 2). For example, the control unit 11 saves the login time in log information D1 as connection start time information, and saves the logout time in log information D1 as connection end time information. The control unit 11 also calculates the time from the connection start time to the connection end time, and saves this as connection time in log information D1.

In step S4, the control unit 11 determines whether the time to send the log has arrived. This timing may be, for example, when the device management device 1 is logged out, shut down, or the date has changed. The control unit 11 determines whether the device management device 1 is logged out, shut down, or the date has changed. If the control unit 11 determines that the time to send the log has arrived (S4: Yes), it transitions the process to step S5. On the other hand, if the control unit 11 determines that the time to send the log has not arrived (S4: No), it transitions the process to step S1. The control unit 11 repeats the above process until the time arrives.

In step S5, the control unit 11 sends the log to the management server 2. Specifically, the control unit 11 sends the log stored in the memory unit 12 (see Figure 2) to the management server 2 at the above timing. Each device management device 1 repeatedly executes the above-mentioned process in parallel.

Next, with reference to Figure 14, we will explain an example of the steps of the device management process executed on the management server 2 and the operation terminal 3. Note that the management server 2 stores logs obtained from each device management device 1.

In step S21, the control unit 31 of the operation terminal 3 acquires the search conditions for the aggregation target. For example, the user of the operation terminal 3 selects the display DP for the aggregation target (e.g., display DP1) as a search condition on the operation screen P1 (see FIG. 5) displayed on the operation terminal 3, and presses the "Display" button. The control unit 31 acquires the search conditions selected by the user (see FIGS. 5, 7, 9, and 11).

Next, in step S22, the control unit 31 sends a request for report information corresponding to the search criteria to the management server 2.

Next, in step S23, the control unit 21 of the management server 2 resets (clears) the current report information.

Next, in step S24, the control unit 21 sets the search position to the beginning. For example, the control unit 21 sets the search position to the beginning log of the multiple logs stored in the memory unit 22.

Next, in step S25, the control unit 21 determines whether the log for which the search position has been set satisfies the search conditions. If the log satisfies the search conditions (S25: Yes), the control unit 21 proceeds to step S26. On the other hand, if the log does not satisfy the search conditions (S25: No), the control unit 21 proceeds to step S27.

In step S26, the control unit 21 adds the log to the report information. That is, the control unit 21 saves the log that satisfies the search conditions in the report information.

Next, in step S27, the control unit 21 determines whether the search location is the last log among the multiple logs. If the search location is the last log (S27: Yes), the control unit 21 transitions the process to step S28. On the other hand, if the search location is not the last log (S27: No), the control unit 21 increments the search location to the next log and transitions the process to step S25. In this way, the control unit 21 sequentially determines whether each of the multiple logs satisfies the search conditions, extracts logs that satisfy the search conditions, and adds them to the report information.

In step S28, the control unit 21 sends report information to the operation terminal 3. The report information includes one or more logs that satisfy the search conditions.

Next, in step S29, the control unit 31 of the operation terminal 3 displays the aggregation results (report) on the operation terminal 3 based on the report information (see Figures 6, 8, 10, and 12).

The operation terminal 3 and management server 2 repeatedly execute the above process each time a user request is received, causing the operation terminal 3 to display report information corresponding to the request.

As described above, the device management system 10 according to this embodiment manages multiple device management devices 1, each of which is connected to at least one device to be managed (e.g., a display DP). The device management system 10 also acquires logs from each of the multiple device management devices 1, including device information about the managed devices and usage status information about the managed devices, and presents the results of compiling the acquired logs.

With the above configuration, it is possible to manage the logs of a display DP even if the display DP does not have a dedicated circuit. This makes it possible to manage the logs of a display DP with a simple configuration. Furthermore, with the above configuration, it is possible to aggregate logs obtained from multiple device management devices 1 and present the user with aggregated results for each display DP, each device management device 1, and each date, etc., allowing the user to understand the usage status of multiple display DPs in various report formats.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and may be embodied in the following ways. For example, the device management device 1 is not limited to being a stationary device installed at the location where the display DP is installed, but may be a mobile terminal that can be moved to the location where the display DP is installed. Furthermore, the location where the display DP is installed is not limited to a conference room, but may be a living room, an entrance, outdoors, etc. Specifically, the device management device 1 may be a mobile terminal such as a laptop computer or smartphone. For example, as shown in FIG. 15, the user moves device management device 1A (laptop computer) to the location where display DP1 is installed and connects it to display DP1. The user also moves device management device 1B (laptop computer) to the locations where displays DP2 and DP3 are installed and connects it to displays DP2 and DP3. The user also moves device management device 1C (smartphone) to the location where display DP4 is installed and connects it to display DP4.

Device management device 1A acquires device information and usage status information from display DP1, device management device 1B acquires device information and usage status information from displays DP2 and DP3, and device management device 1C acquires device information and usage status information from display DP4. Management server 2 acquires the log (device information and usage status information) for display DP1 from device management device 1A, the logs for displays DP2 and DP3 from device management device 1B, and the log for display DP4 from device management device 1C. Management server 2 also aggregates the logs for each display and presents the aggregation results on operation terminal 3.

The devices to be managed in the present invention are not limited to displays DPs, but may also be, for example, printers, digital signage displays, surveillance camera devices, etc. In this way, the device management system of the present invention can be applied to a variety of managed devices.

1: device management device 2: management server 3: operation terminal 10: device management system 111: acquisition processing unit 112: transmission processing unit 211: acquisition processing unit 212: presentation processing unit 311: acquisition processing unit 312: display processing unit DP: display

Claims (9)

1. A device management system that manages a plurality of device management devices, each of which is connected to at least one device to be managed,
an acquisition processing unit that acquires, from each of the plurality of device management apparatuses, a log including device information relating to the managed devices and usage status information of the managed devices;
a presentation processing unit that presents a summary result of aggregating the logs acquired by the acquisition processing unit;
Equipped with
When the presentation processing unit receives a request from an operation terminal for the aggregation result corresponding to a first managed device selected by a user from among the multiple managed devices, the presentation processing unit displays on the operation terminal the aggregation result, which associates, for each use of the first managed device, information on the date and time when the first managed device was used with identification information of the device management device to which the first managed device is connected . when the presentation processing unit receives from the operation terminal a request for the tallying result corresponding to a first device management device selected by a user from the plurality of device management devices, the presentation processing unit displays, on the operation terminal, the tallying result including information on a date and time when the managed device was used for each use of at least one of the managed devices connected to the first device management device;
The device management system according to claim 1 . each of the plurality of device management devices stores the log when a connection state of the device to be managed connected to the device management device changes, and transmits the stored log at a predetermined timing;
the acquisition processing unit stores the log transmitted from the device management device in association with identification information of the device management device;
The device management system according to claim 1 . when receiving a request for the tally result corresponding to a specific day from the operation terminal, the presentation processing unit displays, on the operation terminal, the tally result including information on a time period used on the specific day for each of the plurality of managed devices and identification information of the device management device to which the managed device is connected;
The device management system according to claim 1 . The presentation processing unit further causes the operation terminal to display information about the installation location where the managed device is installed.
The device management system according to claim 1 or 2 . Identification information of each of the plurality of device management devices and information on the installation locations of the device management devices are stored in advance in association with each other.
The device management system according to claim 5 . the managed device is a general-purpose display;
The device management system according to any one of claims 1 to 6 . 1. A device management method for managing a plurality of device management devices, each of which is connected to at least one device to be managed, comprising:
one or more processors,
an acquisition step of acquiring, from each of the plurality of device management devices, a log including device information related to the managed devices and usage status information of the managed devices;
a presentation step of presenting a result of aggregating the logs acquired in the acquisition step;
Run
In the presentation step, when a request for the aggregation result corresponding to a first managed device selected by a user from among the multiple managed devices is received from an operation terminal, the aggregation result, which associates information on the date and time when the first managed device was used with identification information of the device management device to which the first managed device is connected, for each use of the first managed device, is displayed on the operation terminal . A device management program for managing a plurality of device management devices, each of which is connected to at least one device to be managed,
an acquisition step of acquiring, from each of the plurality of device management devices, a log including device information related to the managed devices and usage status information of the managed devices;
a presentation step of presenting a result of aggregating the logs acquired in the acquisition step;
on one or more processors ,
In the presentation step, when a request for the aggregation result corresponding to a first managed device selected by a user from among the multiple managed devices is received from an operation terminal, the device management program causes the operation terminal to display the aggregation result, which associates, for each use of the first managed device, information on the date and time when the first managed device was used with identification information of the device management device to which the first managed device is connected .