JP2001117448A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To provide an image forming apparatus that shortens the time required for replacement of consumables. Further, an image forming apparatus capable of easily performing a consumable purchase process is provided. A determination processing unit in a network printer determines whether or not consumables in a print processing unit should be replaced. When the determination processing unit 204 determines that there is a consumable item to be replaced, the storage area 2
The consumables warning message is transmitted to the PC 102 of the administrator who exchanges the consumables based on the notification destination information stored in the consumables 05. In the consumables purchase process, the consumables purchase order specified by the notification destination information is ordered via the network processing unit 203 by the consumables purchase processing command issued from the panel / display & input unit 201. Performed by Further, in accordance with the consumables purchase processing command issued by the panel / display & input unit 201, a document to be transmitted to the consumables purchaser specified in the notification destination information is printed by the print processor 200.
This is performed by printing.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus having a function of notifying a consumable item replacement time.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there has been an image forming apparatus in which a user is notified via a warning lamp provided in the image forming apparatus after determining a time to replace consumables such as toner in the apparatus. The user, especially the manager who replaces the consumables, has performed the consumables replacement process with the lighting of the warning lamp as a guide. For example,
In the consumables replacement process, the image forming apparatus removes the consumables warned by the warning lamp, orders the consumables,
It is to be attached.

[0003] However, the consumables replacement process is often performed by the above-mentioned specific manager.
It is not always in the image forming apparatus. Further, even if a user other than the administrator detects that the warning lamp is turned on, it is difficult to perform the consumables replacement process. Therefore, it is pointed out that it takes time to replace the consumables. It has also been pointed out that it is difficult for an administrator who replaces consumables to know that the consumables should be replaced.

In recent years, image forming apparatuses have often been placed in a network environment. For this reason, the image forming apparatus is shared by a plurality of personal computers (PCs), the use frequency of the image forming apparatus has increased, and the cycle of exchanging consumables has been shortened. For this reason, it is pointed out that the time required for the consumables replacement process is relatively longer than the time during which the image forming apparatus can be used.

Further, in the consumables replacement process, when purchasing the consumables, a procedure for purchasing the consumables, a model number of the purchased parts, a price of the purchased parts, a purchase destination for each image forming apparatus placed in the network environment. May be different. Therefore, it is pointed out that it is difficult even for an administrator who replaces the consumables to perform the consumables replacement process.

[0006] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-239825 discloses a network system using a status notification method for automatically executing an appropriate action for the status of a device.

According to this conventional technique, when a device in a network detects the state of the device itself and determines that it is necessary to replace consumables in the device, it creates a document required for replacement of consumables. By transmitting the document to a predetermined destination, the consumables replacement process can be shortened. This allows
Consumables ordering is performed automatically.

[0008]

However, according to the above-mentioned prior art, the order of consumables is automatically performed.
The administrator who replaces the consumable may not know that the consumable has been replaced. Therefore, the administrator needs time to grasp that the consumable has been replaced. Further, when consumables are sent from a purchaser, the administrator may not be able to grasp which image forming apparatus is the consumable.
Therefore, the above-mentioned prior art has a problem that consumables replacement processing takes time as a result. In addition, there is a problem that an administrator who replaces consumables cannot know that the consumables should be replaced.

Further, according to this conventional technique, an order slip is automatically transmitted to a predetermined supplier, so that if the supplier of consumables is changed, the setting in the apparatus must be changed immediately. For example, an order slip is transmitted to a conventional supplier. Therefore, the above-mentioned prior art has a problem that the consumables replacement process is not versatile.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in consideration of the above problems, and has as its object to provide an image forming apparatus that reduces the time required for a consumable item replacement process. It is another object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus that allows an administrator who replaces consumables to easily know that consumables should be replaced. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an image processing apparatus capable of performing a general-purpose process for a consumable item replacement process. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an image processing apparatus in which a user other than an administrator who replaces consumables can easily perform a consumables replacement process. Still another object of the present invention is to provide an image processing apparatus capable of easily performing a consumable purchase process.

[0011]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a consumables replacement determining means for determining whether replacement of consumables in an apparatus is necessary, and a consumables replacement determining means. It is characterized by having notifying means for notifying a predetermined user of consumables determined to be replaced among consumables in the apparatus by means, and predetermined items.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the device of the first aspect, the notifying means notifies a predetermined computer via a network.

[0013] The invention according to claim 3 is the invention according to claim 1 or 2.
The above-described apparatus is characterized in that the apparatus further includes a document creating unit that creates a document required for purchasing the consumable item determined as the consumable item to be replaced by the consumable item replacement determining unit.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus according to the third aspect, there is further provided a document transmitting means for transmitting a document created by the document creating means to a consumable supplier.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, it is determined that the consumables to be replaced are determined by the consumables replacement determining means, and the consumables replacement determination is performed. It is characterized by further comprising a consumables replacement recording means for recording that the consumables determined to be replaced by the means have been replaced.

[0016]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a network configuration including a network printer according to an embodiment of the present invention. According to FIG. 1, this network includes network printers 101, 104, 105, 108, PC 10
2, 106, 107 and the server 103.

Network printers 101, 104, 1
05 and 108 print the image data transmitted from the PCs 102, 106 and 107 on paper. PC102, 10
Reference numerals 6 and 107 denote image data of the network printer 10.
1, 104, 105 and 108. Server 103
Manages the entire network.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram showing the internal configuration of the network printer according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG.
According to the above, the print processing unit 200, the panel, the display & input unit 2
01, HDD storage unit 202, network processing unit 20
3, a determination processing unit 204, and a storage area 205.

The print processing section 200 prints the image data input to the network processing section 203 on paper. The print processing unit 200 performs printing using consumables. These consumables include toner, oil, cleaning rollers, photoconductors,
And a waste toner bottle.

The panel / display & input unit 201 displays the status inside the apparatus and setting information to the user. The panel / display & input unit 201 gives an instruction to the user. The panel / display & input unit 201 is used by a user to input setting information.

The HDD storage unit 202 stores the image data received by the network processing unit 203. The HDD storage unit 202 stores the setting information input to the user by the panel / display & input unit 201.

The network processing unit 203 receives image data from a PC connected to the network. The network processing unit 203 is a PC connected to a network.
Send the setting information to. The network processing unit 203
The setting information is received from the PC connected to the network.

The determination processing unit 204 determines whether it is time to replace consumables in the print processing unit 200. Storage area 205
Stores the notification information flag. Also, the storage area 205
Stores communication destination information. The notification information includes a notification destination address, a subject, a communication source address, a product name, and a list price.

The operation of the network printer shown in FIG. 2 for notifying the user to replace the consumables is shown in FIGS.
This will be described with reference to FIGS. The network printer and the PC in the following description use the network printer 101 and the PC 102 shown in FIG. 1, respectively.

The determination processing unit 204 in the network printer 101 determines whether any of the consumables in the print processing unit 200 needs to be replaced (step S30).
0). When the determination processing unit determines that there is no consumable item to be replaced (step S300 / NO), the determination processing unit 204
Reads the notification status flag stored in the storage area 205.

FIG. 4 shows an example of the notification information flag. As shown in FIG. 4, the notification information flag is composed of 8 bits. These bits correspond to consumables in the print processing unit 200. If the number of this bit is 0, the network printer 1 notifies the PC 102 that the consumable corresponding to this bit should be replaced.
01 means not done. When the number of this bit is 1, it means that the network printer 101 has notified the PC 102 that the consumable corresponding to this bit should be replaced, to the PC 102.

Bit 7 shown in FIG. 4A stores information on whether or not a consumables warning has been issued for a waste toner bottle. When bit7 shown in FIG. 4A is set (the bit is 1), the determination processing unit 204
However, this means that the consumables warning for the waste toner bottle is issued after it is determined that the time to replace the waste toner bottle in the print processing unit 200 has come. When bit7 shown in FIG. 4A is 0, it means that the consumables warning has not been issued.

Similarly, bit 6 shown in FIG. 4B is a photosensitive member, bit 5 shown in FIG. 4C is a cleaning roller,
The bit 4 shown in (d) represents the oil and the bit 4 shown in (e)
3 corresponds to cyan toner, bit 2 illustrated in (f) corresponds to magenta toner, bit 1 illustrated in (g) corresponds to yellow toner, and bit 0 illustrated in (h) corresponds to black toner.

The judgment processing unit 204 checks whether there is an item of 1 in the read notification status flag (step S301). When there is an item that is 1 in the notification flag (step S301 / YES), the determination processing unit 204 sets this item to 0 (step S302).
This is because, since there is no consumable to be replaced, after issuing the above-mentioned consumables warning, the user has replaced the consumables notified to be replaced by the consumables warning.

For example, when the notification flag is in the state shown in FIG. 4, the value of the bit shown in FIG. In the print processing unit 200, since the judgment processing unit 204 has determined that there is no more consumables to be replaced, the judgment processing unit 204 issues a consumable goods warning to the user in the past that the magenta toner should be replaced. After that, the user has replaced the magenta toner.

If there is no item in the notification flag which is set to 1 (step S301 / NO), the network printer 101 ends the processing.

When determining that there is a consumable to be replaced in the print processing unit 200 (step S300 / YES), the determination processing unit 204 reads the notification information flag from the storage area 205. The determination processing unit 204 checks whether the bit corresponding to the consumable item determined to be replaced is 1 (step S303).

When the bit is 1 (step S3
03 / YES), the network printer 101 ends the processing. This is because the consumable item warning notifying that the consumable item should be replaced has already been transmitted to the PC 102.

For example, when the determination processing unit 204 determines that it is time to replace the magenta toner and reads the notification information flag shown in FIG.
01 ends the processing. Since the bit shown in FIG. 4F is set (the bit is set to 1), the network printer has already issued a consumable item warning to the PC 102 to replace the magenta toner. It is.

The storage area 205 stores the time at which the consumables warning is issued, and the determination processing unit 204 may issue the consumables warning again after a predetermined time has elapsed from this time. This makes it easier for the user to notice that the consumables warning has been issued. The user is more likely to notice that time has elapsed since the first consumable warning was issued. Also, if a network failure occurs, PC1
Even if the first consumable warning was not notified to 02,
The possibility that the notification reaches the PC 102 increases.

If the bit of the notification information flag is not set to 1 (step S303 / NO), the judgment processing section 204
Checks whether communication destination information is registered in the storage area 205 (step S304).

The communication destination information is registered as shown in FIG. As shown in the first and second lines of FIG. 5, the address of the PC that notifies the consumables warning is registered in the communication destination information. In this address, the address of an administrator who exchanges consumables is registered. In the present embodiment,
The address of the PC 102 is registered. As shown in the third line of FIG. 5, the communication destination information includes the subj
ect is registered. For example, "consumables replacement" is registered. With this subject, the administrator can determine at a glance that the consumables must be replaced.

As shown in the fourth line of FIG. 5, the address of the communication source is registered in the communication destination information. Here, the address of the network printer 102 is registered. This allows the administrator to know in which network printer the consumable item needs to be replaced.

As shown in the fifth to twelfth lines in FIG.
In the communication destination information, the name of the consumable, the model number corresponding to the consumable, and the list price of the consumable are registered. By notifying the administrator of this information, the administrator does not need to check the model number and the price of the consumable to be replaced.

As shown in the thirteenth line of FIG. 5, a comment is registered in the communication destination information. For example, the comment may describe a procedure for purchasing consumables.

This communication destination information is set on a PC connected to the network, and
Is received by the network processing unit 203 and the storage area 205
To save. In addition, the user operates the panel / display & input unit 2
01 may be set.

If the communication destination information is not set in the storage area 205 (step S304 / NO), the judgment processing unit 2
Reference numeral 04 uses the panel / display & input unit 201 to display a message indicating that communication destination information has not been set. After this display, the network printer 101 ends the processing.

When the communication destination information is set in the storage area 205 (step S304 / YES), the judgment processing unit 2
04 creates a consumables warning message (step S306).

This message creates the message shown in FIG. 9 based on the communication destination information shown in FIG. The first line of the consumables warning message shown in FIG. 9 includes “To: nanako”.
@ ricoh.co.jp ". This "nanako@cs.ri
coh.co.jp ”is the destination address 1 shown in the first line of FIG.
Registered in. This "nanako@cs.ricoh.co.jp"
Is a transmission destination address of an administrator who exchanges consumables of the network printer 101.

Based on the destination address 2 shown in the second line of FIG. 5, the message “Cc: momoko @ cs.
ricoh.co.jp ". This "momoko@cs.ricoh.
The consumables warning message is also transmitted to the person having the transmission destination of "co.jp". Thereby, a person other than the administrator is also notified. If the destination address 2 shown in the second line of FIG. 5 is not registered, a message of the consumables warning is not sent to anyone except the person shown in the first line of FIG.

The notification message subj shown in the third line of FIG.
ect, the third line “subj” of the message shown in FIG.
ect: replacement of consumables ”is created. The target printer name shown in FIG. 9 is created based on the communication source address information shown in the fourth line of FIG.

The product name, model number, and price shown in the sixth and subsequent lines in FIG. 9 are created from the information on the product name, model number, and regular price shown in the fifth to twelfth lines in FIG. "Presence / absence" shown in the sixth row and below in FIG. 9 indicates whether it is time to replace the consumables corresponding to the product names shown in the sixth row and below in FIG. The consumables indicated as “1” in “presence / absence” have been determined to be replaced by the determination processing unit 204. 9 in FIG.
As shown in the first line, this consumable warning message
The determination processing unit 204 is notified that it is time to replace the magenta toner in the print processing unit 200. The other consumables whose “presence” shown in the sixth and subsequent lines in FIG. 9 are 0 are those determined by the determination processing unit 204 not to be replaced.

As shown in the sixth and subsequent lines in FIG.
Displays only the list price of consumables whose time for replacement has come. This makes it easier for the user to know the items of consumables that need to be replaced. The comments registered on the thirteenth line in FIG. 5 are described below the fourteenth line in FIG.

After the judgment processing unit 204 creates a consumables warning message, the message is notified to the PC 102 via the network processing unit 203 (step S30).
7). In the communication destination information shown in FIG. 5, the PC 102 is described as a communication destination address. The determination processing unit determines, from the communication destination address, the PC to which the consumables warning message is to be transmitted.

This notification is performed by E-Mail using the TCP / IP protocol. Also, NetBEU
The I protocol may be used.

After transmitting the consumables warning message to the PC 102, the determination processing unit 204 sets the bit of the communication information flag corresponding to the consumable whose replacement time has come to 1 to 1 (step S308). When the judgment processing unit 204 is in the storage area 2
After setting the bit of the communication information flag of 05 to 1, the network printer 101 ends the processing.

The above embodiment is performed when the network printer is started and when it is restarted. Therefore, when exchanging consumables, the above-described flowchart is executed in order to restart the network printer without fail.

According to the above-described embodiment, an administrator who exchanges consumables can know that the consumables need to be exchanged without going to the network printer 102. In addition, the notification that the consumables must be replaced is notified directly to the administrator who replaces the consumables, so that a person unfamiliar with replacing consumables is notified, and There is no need to exchange products.

Therefore, when it is determined that the consumables need to be replaced, the network printer 101 immediately sends a consumables warning message to the administrator, so that the time required for the consumables replacement process is short. Become.

Further, since the procedure of the consumables replacement processing and the like can be described in advance in the comment registered in the communication destination information, even if the procedure of the consumables replacement processing differs for each network printer. Thus, the administrator can easily proceed with the consumables replacement process. In addition, the comment allows even a person other than the administrator to proceed with the consumables replacement process.

When the judgment processing section 204 judges that the consumables in the print processing section 200 should be replaced, the panel / display & input section 2 is added to the notice of the consumables warning.
At 01, it may be notified that the consumables should be replaced. According to this, the user in front of the network printer can also know that the consumables in the print processing unit 200 must be used.

The network printer may change the content of the consumables warning message according to the number of stocked consumables. When a plurality of consumables are purchased, the administrator sets the P via the panel / display & input unit 201 or the network processing unit 203.
Enter the number of consumables purchased from C102. The entered number is stored in the storage area 205 for each consumable,
The number is added for each consumable.

When the judgment processing section 204 judges that the consumables in the print processing section 200 should be replaced, the number of stocked consumables is checked. If the stock is a consumable, the PC 102 is notified only that the consumable should be replaced. If the consumable item has no stock, the above consumable item warning message is notified.

According to this, the network printer can also manage the stock. Also,
The network printer can cope with consumables that need to be purchased in plurals.

When the number of stocks of consumables becomes equal to or less than a predetermined number, the determination processing unit 204 may transmit a notification of a consumables warning to the PC 102. According to this, the administrator can always prepare a fixed number of consumables.

Further, when there is stock, the network printer 101 may print a predetermined document in addition to the notification that the consumables should be replaced. This document describes the storage location of the stock supplies. According to this, the operation of replacing the consumables can be performed not only by the administrator but also by a general user. Further, when the consumables are replaced, the PC 102 may be notified that the consumables have been replaced. According to this, the administrator can know that the consumable has been replaced. Further, the manager can know that the stock has decreased by one.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, 5, 6, and 7, an operation for requesting the purchase of a consumable item after the network printer transmits a consumable item warning in the embodiment of the present invention will be described. I will explain it.

FIG. 6 shows communication destination information stored in the storage area 205. In the communication destination information shown in FIG. 6, in addition to the communication destination information shown in FIG. 5, the ordering party address is registered on the 14th line, and the ordering source information is registered on the 15th line. The e-mail (E-Mail) address or the facsimile number of the store where the consumable item is purchased is registered in the ordering destination address shown on the 14th line in FIG. In the storage area 205, order source information shown in the fifteenth line in FIG. 6 is registered. This ordering source information includes the company name of the ordering source, the affiliation of the administrator, the name of the administrator,
Contact phone number, facsimile number, E-
A mail address is registered.

The network printer 101 has a panel
The display & input unit 201 asks the administrator whether to perform a consumables order request process (step S700). The administrator
If no response is received from the panel / display & input unit 201 to execute the order request processing (step S700 / NO), the network printer 101 ends the processing.

When the administrator responds that the order processing of the consumables is performed (step S700 / YES), the judgment processing unit 204 uses the panel / display & input unit 201 to purchase the consumables. Display the order method in. The determination processing unit 204 allows the administrator to select whether to place an order by E-Mail or order by facsimile transmission (step S701).

If it is selected to order the above consumables by facsimile transmission (step S701 /
NO), the network printer 101 prints a consumable supply purchase sheet for facsimile transmission (step S70).
2). In this printing, a consumables purchase ordering destination, a cover on which a predetermined document is printed, and a consumables order request to be purchased are printed.

The administrator inserts the printed consumables purchase paper
Facsimile transmission is performed to the supplier (step S703).
Thus, the consumable purchase request processing ends.

If the administrator has selected from the panel / display & input unit 201 to request the purchase of consumables by E-Mail (step S701 / YES), the judgment processing unit 20
Reference numeral 4 creates an E-Mail for the purchase request based on the setting contents registered in the storage area 205 and the information on the consumables determined to be replaced by the determination processing unit 204.
The created E-Mail is sent to the network processing unit 203.
(Step S704). After this E-Mail is transmitted, the determination processing unit 204 ends the processing.

According to the above embodiment, the administrator does not need to create a purchase request for consumables. Also, EM
If the administrator selects to make a purchase request by aile, the administrator can perform a consumables ordering process simply by performing a predetermined operation on the panel / display & input unit 201.
Therefore, the time required for the consumables replacement processing can be reduced.

When the network printer has a facsimile function, the created consumables order request form may be transmitted using the facsimile function. According to this, the administrator can use the panel, display &
The ordering process of the consumables can be performed only by performing a predetermined operation in the input unit 201.

It should be noted that a plurality of supplier addresses shown in FIG. 6 are registered, and each time a consumable purchase request process is performed, the administrator selects a supplier in the panel / display & input unit 201. It may be. Thus, it is possible to select the purchase destination of the consumable.

The above-mentioned method of purchasing consumables may include a method of purchasing by telephone. If it is selected to purchase consumables by the telephone, the network printer 101 prints out items necessary for ordering consumables. As a result, even when the consumables are purchased by telephone, the administrator does not need to check the items necessary for the purchase, and the time required for the consumables replacement process is reduced.

Note that, in the case of the purchase request request made using the panel / display & input unit 201, the request made by the administrator in the PC 102 may be received in the network processing unit 203. According to this, when the consumables warning is received by the PC 102, the administrator
02 makes it possible to perform a purchase request process.

In addition to this, it is possible to select to purchase consumables by telephone, and when this selection is made, the network printer 101
The information necessary for ordering the consumables may be notified to 102.

The network printer 101
May be able to store the number of stocked consumables. According to this, it becomes possible to prepare stocks of consumables. In this case, a predetermined number of consumables may be ordered. Whenever consumables are used up, it is not necessary to purchase consumables one by one, and a predetermined number of consumables can be purchased collectively.

The predetermined number may be specified when ordering. Further, the order request processing may be performed when the number of stocked consumables becomes equal to or less than a certain number.

Referring to FIGS. 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, and 10, the operation of recording the situation in which the network printer 101 shown in FIG. 1 exchanges consumables in the embodiment of the present invention will be described. I will explain while.

The determination processing section 204 determines whether there is any consumable to be replaced among the consumables in the print processing section 200 (step S800). This determination is made when the network printer 101 is started and when it is restarted.

When the judgment processing section 204 judges that there is no consumable to be replaced in the print processing section 200 (step S
800 / NO), it is checked whether or not there is a bit set to 1 in the notification information flag stored in the storage area 205 (step S801).

If there is an item that is 1 in the notification information flag (step S801 / YES), the determination processing unit 204 sets the bit of the notification information flag that is 1 to 0 (step S802).

An item for which the notification information flag is set (set to 1) means that a consumables warning has been transmitted to the PC 102 in the past. However, the judgment processing unit 204
Has determined that there is no consumable to be replaced in the print processing unit 200. Therefore, the manager has already replaced the consumable item which is instructed to be replaced by the consumable item warning. Therefore, the item of the notification information flag corresponding to this consumable is cleared to zero.

The judgment processing section 204 sets the information on the item of the notification information flag set to 1 and the bit to 0
A log is recorded for the storage area 205 with the date and time of the setting. After taking the log, the determination processing unit 204 ends this processing.

The notification information flag shown in FIG. 4 means that a consumable warning has been issued for the magenta toner shown in FIG. When this bit is set to 0, the determination processing unit 204 sets the date and time “99/02/03” when the notification information flag is set to 0 and sets the notification information flag to 0, as shown in the second line of FIG. Is stored in the storage area 205 as “toner (magenta) exchange”. After leaving this log in the storage area 205, the determination processing unit 204 ends the processing.

If there is no item in the notification information flag that is 1 (step S801 / NO), the judgment processing unit 2
04 ends this processing.

When the judgment processing unit 204 judges that there is a consumable item to be exchanged in the print processing unit 200 (step S800 / YES), it is judged that the notification information flag in the storage area 205 should be exchanged. It is checked whether the bit corresponding to the consumed consumable is 1 (step S804).

If the above bit is 0 (step S
804 / NO), the determination processing unit 204
(Step S)
805).

If the communication destination information is stored (step S805 / YES), a consumables warning message is created (step S807). This message is created as shown in FIG. 6 based on the communication destination information shown in FIG. The created message is sent to the network processing unit 20.
3 to the PC 102 (step S80).
8).

After transmitting the consumables warning message, the determination processing unit 204 sets the bit of the consumables corresponding to this message in the notification information flag of the storage area 205 to 1, and issues a consumables warning. Is recorded (step S809).

The judgment processing section 204 stores the log to which the above-mentioned consumables warning message has been transmitted in the storage area 205 (step S810). This log is information on the date and time when the consumables warning was issued, the fact that the consumables warning was issued, and the transmission destination to which the consumables warning was transmitted. Judgment processing unit 204
Ends the process after taking the log.

When the determination processing unit 204 determines that the magenta toner in the print processing unit 200 should be replaced and a consumables warning is issued, the notification information flag is set to bit 2 as shown in FIG. To 1. After the notification, as shown in the first line of FIG. 10, the determination processing unit 204 sets the date and time “99/01/24” when the consumables warning was issued and “toner (magenta) silicon quarry” indicating that the consumables warning was issued. , And the notification destination "momoko@cs.ricoh.co.jp" that notified the consumables warning.

If the communication destination information is not registered in the storage area 205 (step S805 / NO), the judgment processing unit 2
04 displays a message to the effect that communication destination information has not been registered on the panel / display & input unit 201 (step S806). The determination processing unit 204 ends this processing.

If the bit of the notification information flag corresponding to the consumable item determined to be replaced is 1 (step S804 / YES), the determination processing unit 204 ends the process.

The log stored in the storage area 205 is
When the user inputs an instruction to print a log from the panel / display & input unit 201, a log as shown in FIG. 10 is printed.

In the log shown in FIG. 10, "99 /
01/24 Toner (Magenta)
@ cs.ricoh.co.jp "is printed. In the log shown in FIG. 10, "99/02/03 Toner (Magenta) Replaceable" is printed on the second line. Therefore, after the consumables warning is issued to replace the magenta toner, the administrator indicates that the toner has been replaced.

In the log shown in FIG. 10, "99 /
05/03 Oil Singing ant momoko@cs.ricoh.c
o.jp "is printed. However, there is no record in the log that the oil was changed. Thus, it can be seen that the oil has not been changed yet.

According to the above embodiment, the administrator can check the status regarding replacement of consumables.
As a result, the time required for the consumables replacement process is reduced. Further, an administrator who manages consumables can easily perform stock management of consumables.

Note that the above instruction may be performed by the PC 102 and the network printer 101 may receive the instruction by the network processing unit 203.

[0099]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the consumables replacement determining means for determining whether replacement of consumables in the apparatus is necessary, and the consumables replacement determining means. Notification means for notifying a predetermined user of consumables that are determined to be replaced among consumables in the apparatus, so that an administrator who replaces consumables should replace consumables. This can be easily recognized. Further, since the manager who replaces the consumables is notified that the consumables should be replaced, it is possible to reduce the time required for the consumables replacement process. Furthermore, since the description of the predetermined content regarding the replacement of the consumables is also notified, the consumables replacement process is further facilitated.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus of the first aspect, the notifying means notifies a predetermined computer (PC) via a network, so that an administrator who exchanges consumables is provided. Is notified to replace the consumable item directly. As a result, the time required for the consumables replacement process is reduced.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus according to the first or second aspect, the document creation means for creating a document required for purchasing the consumables determined to be replaced by the consumables replacement determining means. , The administrator who replaces the consumable does not need to fill out an order form to purchase the consumable. Therefore, the consumables replacement process becomes easier. Further, the time required for the consumables replacement process is reduced.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the apparatus according to the third aspect further comprises a document transmitting means for transmitting the document created by the document creating means to a consumable supplier. The replacement manager does not need to fill out an order form to purchase consumables. Therefore, the consumables replacement process becomes easier. Further, the time required for the consumables replacement process is reduced.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the consumable item replacement determining means determines that the consumable item needs to be replaced, and the consumable item. By further including a consumable item replacement recording unit that records that the consumable item determined to be replaced by the replacement determining unit has been replaced, an administrator who replaces the consumable item can replace the consumable item in the apparatus. The situation can be easily known.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a network according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram illustrating an internal configuration of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention for notifying a consumable item warning;

FIG. 4 is an example showing a state of a notification information flag according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an example of registration of first notification destination information according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an example of registration of second notification destination information according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a consumables order request process according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining an operation of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention for logging a consumable item replacement log.

FIG. 9 is an example of a consumables warning message according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an example of a log of replacement of consumables according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

101, 104, 105, 108 Network printers 102, 106, 107 PC 103 server 200 Print processing unit 201 Panel / display & input unit 202 HDD storage unit 203 Network processing unit 204 Judgment processing unit 205 Storage area

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Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A consumable goods replacement judging means for judging whether replacement of consumable goods in the apparatus is necessary, and the consumable goods exchange judging means, among the consumable goods in the apparatus,
An image forming apparatus, comprising: a notifying unit that notifies a predetermined user of a consumable item determined to be replaced and a predetermined item. 2. The notification means via a network,
2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the notification is sent to a predetermined computer. 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a document creating unit that creates a document required for purchasing the consumable item determined as the consumable item to be replaced by the consumable item replacement determining unit. apparatus. 4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a document transmitting unit that transmits the document created by the document creating unit to a consumable supplier. 5. Recording that the consumable item replacement determining means has determined that the consumable item needs to be replaced and that the consumable item determined as the consumable item to be replaced has been replaced. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a consumables replacement recording unit.