Information processing apparatus, management control method, computer program and memory medium

• US 7,275,101 B2
• Filed: 11/15/2001
• Issued: 09/25/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/17/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Nakamura, Shinichi, Hara, Hiroyuki, Kawashima, Makoto, Hirose, Junichi, Ohmori, Kazushi, Katayama, Kojiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Najjar; Saleh
• Assistant Examiner(s): WANG, LIANG CHE A
• Application Number:
  US09/987,486
• Publication Number:
  US 20020083164A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,140 Days
• Field of Search: 709/223, 709/224, 709/207, 340/500, 347/7, 347/19, 347/23, 358/1.15
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders

Abstract

The information processing apparatus of the present invention comprises alarm means for informing an alarm to expedite the delivery of an expendable to a communication address assigned to a person in charge of distribution, in response, after the instruction for delivery according to the information on the expendable of predetermined type included in the inventory absence information received from a user base side and information for specifying the user, to reception of information indicating a decrease or absence of the inventory of the expendable of the predetermined type.

Claims

1. An inventory management system that manages an inventory of an expendable, comprising:

a first storage unit, adapted to store inventory information indicating an inventory number of an expendable which is mounted in a printer and can be replaced, the inventory number being reduced based on replacement of the expendable in the printer;

a receiver unit, adapted to receive absence information indicating that the inventory number of the expendable is zero or less than a predetermined number;

an instruction unit, adapted to provide, to an external apparatus via a communication line, a delivery instruction for delivery of a new expendable;

a second storage unit, adapted to store history information indicating a history of the delivery instruction provided by said instruction unit; and

an alarm sending unit, adapted (i) to send an alarm to the external apparatus via the communication line if a new reception of the absence information is received by said receiver unit after said instruction unit provides the delivery instruction for delivery of the new expendable, and if the history information is present in said second storage unit, and (ii) not to send the alarm to the external apparatus if a new reception of the absence information is received by said receiver unit, and if the history information is absent in said second storage unit.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein the inventory information stored by said first storage unit can be monitored by an external apparatus.

3. A system according to claim 2, wherein the inventory information can be monitored by a browser provided in the external apparatus, and said first storage unit is able to output display information enabling the browser to monitor the inventory information.

4. A system according to claim 2, wherein said first storage unit stores the inventory information for each one of a plurality of expendable types, and the inventory information can be monitored for each expendable type by the external apparatus.

5. A system according to claim 4, wherein said second storage unit stores the history information for each one of the plurality of expendable types so as to show that the delivery instruction has been provided for each expendable type, and wherein the inventory information can be monitored for each expendable type by the external apparatus.

6. A system according to claim 5, further comprising an order reception unit adapted to receive an order for an expendable of any one of the plurality of expendable types from the external apparatus, wherein the external apparatus is provided with an order placement display screen having a plurality of order placement sections for respective ones of the plurality of expendable types and wherein each order placement section is activated or inactivated in accordance with the inventory number of expendable for a expendable type corresponding to the order placement section.

7. A system according to claim 1, wherein the expendable is toner or ink.

8. A system according to claim 1, wherein the absence information indicates that a remaining amount of an expendable is at a low level.

9. An inventory management control method that manages an inventory of an expendable, comprising the steps of:

storing inventory information indicating an inventory number of an expendable which is mounted in a printer and can be replaced, the inventory number being reduced based on replacement of the expendable in the printer;

receiving absence information indicating that the inventory number of the expendable is zero or less than a predetermined number;

providing, to an external apparatus via a communication line, a delivery instruction for delivery of a new expendable; and

storing in a storage unit history information indicating a history of the delivery instruction provided in said providing step; and

sending an alarm to the external apparatus via the communication line if a new reception of the absence information is received in said receiving step after the delivery instruction for delivery of the new expendable is provided, and if the history information is present in the storage unit, and not sending the alarm to the external apparatus if a new reception of the absence information is received in said receiving step, and if the history information is absent in the storage unit.

10. An inventory management control method according to claim 9, wherein the stored inventory information can be monitored by an external apparatus.

11. An inventory management control method according to claim 10, wherein the inventory information can be monitored by a browser provided in the external apparatus, and further comprising the step of outputting display information enabling the browser to monitor the inventory information.

12. An inventory management control method according to claim 10, wherein the inventory information for each one of a plurality of expendable types is stored, and the inventory information can be monitored for each expendable type by the external apparatus.

13. An inventory management control method according to claim 12, wherein the history information for each one of the plurality of expendable types is stored so as to show that the delivery instruction has been provided for each expendable type, and wherein the inventory information can be monitored for each expendable type by the external apparatus.

14. An inventory management control method according to claim 13, further comprising the step of receiving an order for an expendable of any one of the plurality of expendable types from the external apparatus, wherein the external apparatus is provided with an order placement display screen having a plurality of order placement sections for respective ones of the plurality of expendable types and wherein each order placement section is activated or inactivated in accordance with the inventory number of expendable for a expendable type corresponding to the order placement section.

15. An inventory management control method according to claim 9, wherein the expendable is toner or ink.

16. An inventory management control method according to claim 9, wherein the absence information indicates that a remaining amount of an expendable is at a low level.

17. A computer program stored on a computer-readable medium to be executed by an inventory management system that manages an inventory of an expendable, comprising the steps of:

storing inventory information indicating an inventory number of an expendable which is mounted in a printer and can be replaced, the inventory number being reduced based on replacement of the expendable in the printer;

receiving absence information indicating that the inventory number of the expendable is zero or less than a predetermined number;

providing, to an external apparatus via a communication line, a delivery instruction for delivery of a new expendable; and

storing in a storage unit history information indicating a history of the delivery instruction provided in said providing step; and

sending an alarm to the external apparatus via the communication line if a new reception of the absence information is received in said receiving step after the delivery instruction for delivery of the new expendable is provided, and if the history information is present in the storage unit, and not sending the alarm to the external apparatus if a new reception of the absence information is received in said receiving step, and if the history information is not present in the storage unit.

18. A computer program according to claim 17, wherein the stored inventory information can be monitored by an external apparatus.

19. A computer program according to claim 18, wherein the inventory information can be monitored by a browser provided in the external apparatus, and further comprising the step of outputting display information enabling the browser to monitor the inventory information.

20. A computer program according to claim 18, wherein the inventory information for each one of a plurality of expendable types is stored, and the inventory information can be monitored for each expendable type by the external apparatus.

21. A computer program according to claim 20, wherein the history information for each one of the plurality of expendable types is stored so as to show that the delivery instruction has been provided for each expendable type, and wherein the inventory information can be monitored for each expendable type by the external apparatus.

22. A computer program according to claim 21, further comprising the step of receiving an order for an expendable of any one of the plurality of expendable types from the external apparatus, wherein the external apparatus is provided with an order placement display screen having a plurality of order placement sections for respective ones of the plurality of expendable types and wherein each order placement section is activated or inactivated in accordance with the inventory number of expendable for a expendable type corresponding to the order placement section.

23. A computer program according to claim 17, wherein the expendable is toner or ink.

24. A computer program according to claim 17, wherein the absence information indicates that a remaining amount of an expendable is at a low level.