IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS AND METHOD OF THE SAME

• US 20080232840A1
• Filed: 03/20/2007
• Published: 09/25/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation), Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation), Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Ebihara, Hideyuki
• Application Number:
  US11/688,553
• Publication Number:
  US 20080232840A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 399/79
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/502 relating to the structure of the control menu, e.g. pop-up menus, help screens
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/5083 for scheduling
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/553 Monitoring or warning means for exhaustion or lifetime end of consumables, e.g. indication of insufficient copy sheet quantity for a job
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 21/02 Counting the number of copies; Billing
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 2215/00109 Remote control of apparatus, e.g. by a host
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1207 resulting in the user being informed about print result after a job submission
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1213 at an intermediate node or at the final node
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1238 Secure printing, e.g. user identification, user rights for device usage, unallowed content, blanking portions or fields of a page, releasing held jobs
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1259 Print job monitoring, e.g. job status
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1263 based on job priority, e.g. re-arranging the order of jobs, e.g. the printing sequence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1285 Remote printer device, e.g. being remote from client or server

Abstract

The number of prints necessary for execution of a print job of a storage type, together with the surplus number of prints, is calculated. A difference B between an upper limit value A and the number C of prints is calculated during execution of a print job. When there is a print job of the storage type having the number of prints not lower than the difference B, notification that the upper limit value of the number of prints approaches is given to a user having issued the print job.

Claims

1. An image forming apparatus comprising:

a storage section to store an upper limit value of the number of prints for each user or each department to which the user belongs;

a first determination section to determine whether, when a print job is inputted, the print job is a storage type in which it is once stored and is later executed;

a first calculation section to calculate, when a determination result of the first determination section is the storage type, the number of prints necessary for execution of the inputted print job, together with the surplus number of prints;

a plurality of management tables of the number of prints in each of which the number of prints calculated by the first calculation section is made to correspond to the inputted print job and is registered for the each user or the each department;

a count section to count the number of prints for the each user or the each department at a time of execution of the print job;

a second determination section to determine whether a count value of the count section reaches the upper limit value in the storage section for the each user having issued the print job under execution or the each department to which the user belongs;

a control section to stop the print job under execution when the count value reaches the upper limit value in determination of the second determination section;

a second calculation section to calculate, when the count value does not reach the upper limit value in the determination of the second determination section, a difference between the upper limit value and the count value for the each user having issued the print job under execution or the each department to which the user belongs;

a third determination section to select a management table of the number of prints corresponding to the user having issued the print job under execution or the department to which the user belongs among the respective management tables of the number of prints, and to determine whether there is a print job having the number of prints not lower than the difference calculated by the second calculation section among the respective numbers of prints registered in the selected management table of the number of prints; and

a notification section to notify, when a determination result of the third determination section is yes, the user having issued the print job that the upper limit value of the number of prints approaches.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the print job of the storage type is a private print job executed by password input of a user and a schedule print job executed at a scheduled time.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an operation section to variably set the surplus number of prints.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the third determination section has a determination pattern in which the determination is made in synchronization with completion of printing of one sheet, and a determination pattern in which the determination is made in synchronization with completion of one print job.

5. An apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising an operation section to set one of the respective determination patterns.

6. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the notification section has a notify pattern in which the notification is made only once, and a notify pattern in which the notification is made repeatedly.

7. An apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising an operation section to set one of the respective notify patterns.

8. An image forming apparatus comprising:

storage means for storing an upper limit value of the number of prints for each user or each department to which the user belongs;

first determination means for determining whether, when a print job is inputted, the print job is a storage type in which it is once stored and is later executed;

first calculation means for calculating, when a determination result of the first determination means is the storage type, the number of prints necessary for execution of the inputted print job, together with the surplus number of prints;

a plurality of management means of the number of prints in each of which the number of prints calculated by the first calculation means is made to correspond to the inputted print job and is registered for the each user or the each department;

count means for counting the number of prints for the each user or the each department at a time of execution of the print job;

second determination means for determining whether a count value of the count means reaches the upper limit value in the storage means for the each user having issued the print job under execution or the each department to which the user belongs;

control means for stopping the print job under execution when the count value reaches the upper limit value in determination of the second determination means;

second calculation means for calculating, when the count value does not reach the upper limit value in the determination of the second determination means, a difference between the upper limit value and the count value for the each user having issued the print job under execution or the each department to which the user belongs;

third determination means for selecting a management table of the number of prints corresponding to the user having issued the print job under execution or the department to which the user belongs among the respective management tables of the number of prints, and for determining whether there is a print job having the number of prints not lower than the difference calculated by the second calculation means among the respective numbers of prints registered in the selected management table of the number of prints; and

notification means for notifying, when a determination result of the third determination means is yes, the user having issued the print job that the upper limit value of the number of prints approaches.

9. An apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the print job of the storage type is a private print job executed by password input of a user and a schedule print job executed at a scheduled time.

10. An apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising operation means for variably setting the surplus number of prints.

11. An apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the third determination means has a determination pattern in which the determination is made in synchronization with completion of printing of one sheet, and a determination pattern in which the determination is made in synchronization with completion of one print job.

12. An apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising operation means for setting one of the respective determination patterns.

13. An apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the notification means has a notify pattern in which the notification is made only once, and a notify pattern in which the notification is made repeatedly.

14. An apparatus according to claim 13, further comprising operation means for setting one of the respective notify patterns.

15. A control method of an image forming apparatus, comprising:

storing an upper limit value of the number of prints for each user or each department to which the user belongs;

determining whether, when a print job is inputted, the print job is a storage type in which it is once stored and is later executed;

calculating, when the determination result is the storage type, the number of prints necessary for execution of the inputted print job, together with the surplus number of prints;

making the calculated number of prints to correspond to the inputted print job and registering it for the each user or the each department;

counting the number of prints for the each user or the each department at a time of execution of the print job;

determining whether the count value reaches the upper limit value for the each user having issued the print job under execution or the each department to which the user belongs;

stopping the print job under execution when the count value reaches the upper limit value in the determination;

calculating, when the count value does not reach the upper limit value in the determination, a difference between the upper limit value and the count value for the each user having issued the print job under execution or the each department to which the user belongs;

determining whether there is a print job having the number of prints not lower than the calculated difference among the respective registered numbers of prints; and

notifying, when the determination result is yes, the user having issued the print job that the upper limit value of the number of prints approaches.