Image forming process management device, management method and computer readable medium

• US 8,456,675 B2
• Filed: 04/02/2010
• Issued: 06/04/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/27/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fuji Xerox Company Limited (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Fuji Xerox Company Limited (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Sasagawa, Shigekazu
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAN, DOUGLAS Q
• Application Number:
  US12/753,515
• Publication Number:
  US 20110051180A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,159 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 358/1.15
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/608 Secure printing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1222 Increasing security of the print job
• 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 3/1239 Restricting the usage of resources, e.g. usage or user levels, credit limit, consumables, special fonts

Abstract

A management device includes a receiving unit, a judgment unit, a permission unit and a change unit. The permission unit permits the image forming device to perform a requested image forming processes, if the judgment unit judges that a number of image forming process which have been performed is within a first upper limit value. The change unit sets, if the number of image forming process which have been performed exceeds the first upper limit value through the requested and permitted image forming processes being performed, a second upper limit value used for limiting image forming processes at the next time based on an excess amount from the first upper limit value.

Claims

1. A management device comprising:

a receiving unit that receives a request for image forming process of an image forming device and information regarding the image forming device;

a judgment unit that, if the image forming device is judged to be incapable of limiting a number of image forming processes to be performed within a first upper limit value based on the information received by the receiving unit, judges whether or not a number of image forming processes which have been performed is within the first upper limit value;

a permission unit that permits the image forming device to perform the requested image forming processes, if the judgment unit judges that the number of image forming process which have been performed is within the first upper limit value; and

a change unit that sets, if the number of image forming process which have been performed exceeds the first upper limit value through the requested and permitted image forming processes being performed, a second upper limit value which is used for limiting image forming processes at the next time based on an excess amount from the first upper limit value.

2. A management method comprising:

receiving a request for image forming process of an image forming device and information regarding the image forming device;

judging, if the image forming device is judged to be incapable of limiting a number of image forming processes to be performed within a first upper limit value based on the information received by the receiving unit, whether or not a number of image forming processes which have been performed is within the first upper limit value;

permitting the image forming device to perform the requested image forming processes, if the judgment unit judges that the number of image forming process which have been performed is within the first upper limit value; and

setting, if the number of image forming process which have been performed exceeds the first upper limit value through the requested and permitted image forming processes being performed, a second upper limit value which is used for limiting image forming processes at the next time based on an excess amount from the first upper limit value.

3. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing a program causing a computer to execute a process for managing an image forming apparatus, the process comprising:

receiving a request for image forming process of an image forming device and information regarding the image forming device;

judging, if the image forming device is judged to be incapable of limiting a number of image forming processes to be performed within a first upper limit value based on the information received by the receiving unit, whether or not a number of image forming processes which have been performed is within the first upper limit value;

permitting the image forming device to perform the requested image forming processes, if the judgment unit judges that the number of image forming process which have been performed is within the first upper limit value; and

setting, if the number of image forming process which have been performed exceeds the first upper limit value through the requested and permitted image forming processes being performed, a second upper limit value which is used for limiting image forming processes at the next time based on an excess amount from the first upper limit value.