IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS, IMAGE FORMING SYSTEM, METHOD OF CONTROLLING THE SAME, AND STORAGE MEDIUM

• US 20140204407A1
• Filed: 01/07/2014
• Published: 07/24/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/18/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Ayutthaya Limited (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Ayutthaya Limited (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: TOKUMARU, Akiko
• Granted Patent: US 9,019,524 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 358/1.14
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00885 Power supply means, e.g. arrangements for the control of power supply to the apparatus or components thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00891 Switching on or off, e.g. for saving power when not in use H04N1/00896 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00896 using a low-power mode, e.g. standby

Abstract

An image forming apparatus and image forming system for communicating with a network via a server are disclosed. The server responds to an inquiry about device information of the image forming apparatus based on device information stored in a memory in a case that the server is in a power saving mode, and also updates device information in the memory upon receiving device information from the image forming apparatus. In addition, the server updates device information in the memory by requesting the image forming apparatus for the device information of the image forming apparatus in a case where the server shifts to the power saving mode. In a case that the device information of the image forming apparatus has changed, the image forming apparatus transmits the changed device information to the server.

Claims

1. An image forming system including an image forming apparatus for communicating with a network via a server,

wherein the server comprises:

a proxy response unit configured to respond to an inquiry about device information of the image forming apparatus based on device information stored in a memory in a case that the server is in the power saving mode; and

an updating unit configured to update device information in the memory upon receiving device information from the image forming apparatus, and update device information in the memory by requesting the image forming apparatus for the device information of the image forming apparatus in a case where the server shifts to the power saving mode, and

wherein the image forming apparatus comprises;

a transmission unit configured to transmit, in a case that the device information of the image forming apparatus has changed, the changed device information to the server; and

a response unit configured to transmit the device information of the image forming apparatus to the server in response to the request for the device information from the updating unit.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein in a case that the server is in the power saving mode, the transmission unit transmits changed device information of the image forming apparatus after the server is set in a non-power saving mode upon transmission of an instruction to return from the power saving mode to the server.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein upon receiving an inquiry about the device information of the image forming apparatus in the non-power saving mode, the server responds to the inquiry using the device information acquired from the image forming apparatus.

4. An image forming apparatus for communicating with a network via a server, the apparatus comprising:

a storage unit configured to store device information indicating a status of the image forming apparatus;

an updating unit configured to update, in a case that the status of the image forming apparatus has changed, the device information in the storage unit with device information corresponding to the changed status, and transmit the updated device information to the server; and

a transmission unit configured to transmit device information stored in the storage unit to the server in response to a request for device information from the server.

5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the request for device information from the server is transmitted from the server in a case that the server shifts from a non-power saving mode to a power saving mode.

6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the request for device information from the server is transmitted from the server by receiving an inquiry about device information from the network in a case that the server is in the non-power saving mode.

7. A method of controlling an image forming system including an image forming apparatus for communicating with a network via a server, the method comprising:

causing the server to respond to an inquiry about device information of the image forming apparatus based on device information stored in a memory in a case that the server is in a power saving mode;

causing the server to update device information in the memory upon receiving device information from the image forming apparatus;

causing the server to update device information in the memory by requesting the image forming apparatus for the device information of the image forming apparatus in a case where the server shifts to the power saving mode;

causing the image forming apparatus to transmit, in a case that the device information of the image forming apparatus has changed, the changed device information to the server; and

causing the image forming apparatus to transmit the device information of the image forming apparatus to the server in response to the request for the device information from the server.

8. A method of controlling an image forming apparatus for communicating with a network via a server, the method comprising:

storing device information indicating a status of the image forming apparatus in a memory;

updating, in a case that the status of the image forming apparatus has changed, the device information in the memory with device information corresponding to the changed status, and transmitting the updated device information to the server; and

transmitting device information stored in the memory to the server in response to a request for device information from the server.

9. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to function as an image forming apparatus for communicating with a network via a server, the apparatus comprising:

a storage unit configured to store device information indicating a status of the image forming apparatus;

an updating unit configured to update, in a case that the status of the image forming apparatus has changed, the device information in the storage unit with device information corresponding to the changed status, and transmit the updated device information to the server; and

a transmission unit configured to transmit device information stored in the storage unit to the server in response to a request for device information from the server.