JP7508923B2 - Information processing device, information processing system, setting value recommendation method and program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing device, an information processing system, a setting value recommendation method, and a program.

A function is being developed that allows individual settings for each user on a device used by multiple users.

In addition, devices have been developed that display recommended functions to users. For example, an image forming device has been disclosed that compiles combination information about the frequency with which a function is combined with other functions, and displays functions that are often combined with a function selected by a user.

For devices used by multiple users, there is a demand for appropriate settings to be recommended as individual settings for each user. Even if the above-mentioned conventional technology is applied to such a demand, it is difficult to recommend settings suitable for each individual user because the recommended settings are determined based on a combination of functions.

The disclosed technology aims to recommend settings that are appropriate for individual users.

The disclosed technology is an information processing system including an appliance and an information processing device connected to the appliance via a network, wherein the appliance has a usage history sending unit that sends usage history data indicating a history of use of the appliance by an authenticated user to the information processing device, and the information processing device has a usage data collecting unit that receives the usage history data from the appliance and collects usage data indicating the usage status of the appliance for each user , and a usage status determining unit that determines whether or not there is a second user whose usage status is similar to that of a first user based on the collected usage data, based on a similarity of data including the number of times functions of the appliance are used or the ratio of the number of times each function is used, and a recommended setting information output unit that outputs user-specific setting information of a recommended appliance to the appliance based on the collected usage data and appliance setting information for each user, and the appliance further has a recommended setting value reflection operation receiving unit that receives the setting information output from the recommended setting information output unit, displays the setting values included in the setting information, and receives from the user an operation to reflect the setting values included in the setting information in the authenticated user's setting information.

We can recommend settings that are appropriate for each individual user.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a system configuration of an information processing system. FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a hardware configuration of an information processing device. FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a hardware configuration of an image forming apparatus. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of functions of an information processing device. FIG. 2 illustrates an example of functions of an image forming apparatus. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of user information. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of usage status data. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of user setting information. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a processing flow of the image forming apparatus. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a processing flow of an information processing device. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a display screen of the image forming apparatus.

Below, an embodiment of an information processing system according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

Figure 1 shows an example of the system configuration of an information processing system.

The information processing system 1 includes an information processing device 10 and an image forming device 20.

The information processing device 10 and the image forming device 20 are connected to each other so that they can communicate with each other via a communication network 30.

The information processing device 10 has, for example, as a base function, an external linkage function for linking with external services such as user authentication, device authentication, tenant information management, device information management, user information management, screen information management, file management, and cloud storage. In addition, the information processing device 10 has various functions including an API for receiving requests from the image forming device 20 and executing each function, and functions as a Web service providing system that provides each function.

The information processing device 10 is constructed as a platform for providing cloud services with various functions, for example. Furthermore, the information processing device 10 executes processes defined in various web application programs (hereinafter referred to as web apps) as the above-mentioned cloud services. A web app is an application program that defines the functions that the information processing device 10, as a web server, provides to the image forming device 20, which is a web client.

The image forming device 20 is a device that realizes image forming functions such as scanning, printing, and copying. In addition to realizing the image forming function by itself, the image forming device 20 also functions as a Web client that uses various functions provided by the information processing device 10.

The image forming device 20 has a function of performing different operations based on the settings for each user. For example, the home screen displayed on the image forming device 20 has an icon layout and background image based on the settings for each user. In addition, the screen displayed by the image forming device 20 is displayed in a language based on the settings for each user.

The communication network 30 may be wireless or wired, for example, a LAN (Local Area Network), a WAN (Wide Area Network), a VPN (Virtual Private Network), the Internet, etc.

Next, we will explain the hardware configuration of each device in the information processing system 1.

Figure 2 shows an example of the hardware configuration of an information processing device.

The information processing device 10 is constructed by a computer and includes a CPU 101, a ROM 102, a RAM 103, a HD 104, a HDD (Hard Disk Drive) controller 105, a display 106, an external device connection I/F (Interface) 108, a network I/F 109, a bus line 110, a keyboard 111, a pointing device 112, a DVD-RW (Digital Versatile Disk Rewritable) drive 114, and a media I/F 116.

Of these, the CPU 101 controls the operation of the entire information processing device 10. The ROM 102 stores programs used to drive the CPU 101, such as an IPL (Initial Program Loader). The RAM 103 is used as a work area for the CPU 101. The HD 104 stores programs such as a guest network creation application and various other data. The HDD controller 105 controls the reading and writing of various data from the HD 104 under the control of the CPU 101. The display 106 displays various information such as a cursor, menu, window, text, or image.

The external device connection I/F 108 is an interface for connecting various external devices. In this case, the external devices are, for example, USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory, printers, etc. The network I/F 109 is an interface for data communication with other devices using the communication network 30. The bus line 110 is an address bus, data bus, etc. for electrically connecting each component such as the CPU 101 shown in FIG. 2.

The keyboard 111 is a type of input means equipped with multiple keys for inputting characters, numbers, various instructions, etc. The pointing device 112 is a type of input means for selecting and executing various instructions, selecting a processing target, moving a cursor, etc. The DVD-RW drive 114 controls the reading and writing of various data from the DVD-RW 113, which is an example of a removable recording medium. Note that this is not limited to a DVD-RW, and may be a DVD-R, etc. The media I/F 116 controls the reading and writing (storing) of data from the media 115, such as a flash memory.

Figure 3 shows an example of the hardware configuration of an image forming device.

The image forming device 20 includes a main body 210 that realizes an image forming function, and an operation unit 220 that accepts user operations. Note that accepting user operations is a concept that includes accepting information (including signals indicating screen coordinate values, etc.) input in response to user operations.

The main body unit 210 and the operation unit 220 are connected to each other so that they can communicate with each other via a communication path 201. The communication path 201 may be, for example, a path conforming to the USB (Universal Serial Bus) standard. Note that the communication path 201 may be a path conforming to a standard other than the USB standard, regardless of whether it is wired or wireless.

The main body 210 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 211, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 212, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 213, a storage unit 214, a communication I/F (Interface) 215, a connection I/F 216, an engine unit 217, an external connection I/F 218, and a system bus 219.

The CPU 211 is a computing device that controls the operation of the entire main body 210 by executing programs stored in the ROM 212 or the storage unit 214, etc., using the RAM 213 as a work area. For example, the CPU 211 uses the engine unit 217 to realize various functions such as copying, scanning, faxing, and printing.

The ROM 212 is a non-volatile memory that stores, for example, a basic input/output system (BIOS) that is executed when the main body unit 210 is started, various settings, etc. The RAM 213 is a volatile memory that is used as a work area for the CPU 211, etc. The storage unit 214 is a non-volatile storage device that stores, for example, an operating system (OS), application programs, various data, etc., and is composed of, for example, a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), etc.

The communication I/F 215 is a network interface such as a wireless LAN or a wired LAN for connecting the main body unit 210 to the communication network 70 and communicating with external devices. The connection I/F 216 is an interface for communicating between the main body unit 210 and the operation unit 220 via the communication path 201.

The engine unit 217 is hardware that performs general-purpose information processing and processing other than communication in order to realize functions such as copying, scanning, faxing, and printing. The engine unit 217 includes, for example, a scanner (image reading unit) that scans and reads images of documents, a plotter (image forming unit) that prints on sheet materials such as paper, and a fax unit that performs fax communication. Furthermore, the engine unit 217 may include specific options such as a finisher that sorts printed sheet materials and an ADF (automatic document feeder) that automatically feeds documents.

The external connection I/F 218 is an interface for connecting an external device to the main body 210. The external device may include, for example, an IC card reader 103 or a mobile sensor. The system bus 219 is connected to each of the above components and transmits address signals, data signals, various control signals, etc.

The operation unit 220 has a CPU 221, a ROM 222, a RAM 223, a flash memory 224, a communication I/F 225, an operation panel 226, a connection I/F 227, an external connection I/F 228, a camera 229, and a system bus 230, etc.

The CPU 221 is a computing device that controls the operation of the entire operation unit 220 by executing programs stored in the ROM 222 or the flash memory 224, etc., using the RAM 223 as a work area. The ROM 222 is a non-volatile memory that stores, for example, a BIOS that is executed when the operation unit 220 is started up, and various settings. The RAM 223 is a volatile memory used as a work area for the CPU 221. The flash memory 224 is a non-volatile storage device that stores, for example, an OS, application programs, various data, etc.

The communication I/F 225 is a network interface such as a wireless LAN or a wired LAN that connects the operation unit 220 to the communication network 70 and communicates with external devices.

The operation panel 226 accepts various inputs in response to user operations and displays various information. The operation panel 226 is, for example, configured with a liquid crystal display (LCD: Liquid Crystal Display) equipped with a touch panel function, but is not limited to this. The operation panel 226 may be, for example, configured with an organic EL (Electro Luminescence) display device equipped with a touch panel function. Furthermore, the operation panel 226 may also be provided with an operation unit such as hardware keys and a display unit such as a lamp in addition to or instead of this.

The connection I/F 227 is an interface for communication between the operation unit 220 and the main body unit 210 via the communication path 201. The external connection I/F 228 is an interface, such as a USB, for connecting an external device.

The camera 229 is a photographing device that photographs an image of the user. The camera 229 may be installed outside the image forming device 20 and connected to the operation unit 220 via the external connection I/F 228. The system bus 230 is connected to each of the above components and transmits address signals, data signals, various control signals, etc.

Next, we will explain the functions of each device in the information processing system 1.

Figure 4 shows an example of the functions of an information processing device.

The information processing device 10 includes a memory unit 11, an authentication unit 12, a usage data collection unit 13, a usage status determination unit 14, a recommended setting information output unit 15, and a user setting information update unit 16.

The storage unit 11 stores various types of information. Specifically, the storage unit 11 stores user information 901, usage data 902, and user setting information 903.

The user information 901 is information for authenticating a user who uses the image forming device 20. Specific examples of the user information 901 will be described later.

The usage status data 902 is data that indicates the usage status of the image forming device 20 for each user. Specific examples of the usage status data 902 will be described later.

The user setting information 903 is information that indicates the setting values of the image forming device 20 for each user. Specific examples of the user setting information 903 will be described later.

The authentication unit 12 performs user authentication in response to a request from the image forming device 20. Specifically, the authentication unit 12 receives data indicating a combination of the user's email address and password entered into the image forming device 20, and compares it with the user information 901.

Then, if a record that matches the combination of email address and password exists in the user information 901, the authentication unit 12 sends a signal indicating successful authentication to the image forming device 20, and if a record that matches the combination of email address and password does not exist in the user information 901, the authentication unit 12 sends a signal indicating unsuccessful authentication to the image forming device 20.

The usage data collection unit 13 collects usage data from the image forming device 20. Specifically, the usage data collection unit 13 receives usage history data from the image forming device 20 that indicates the history of function usage, and tally up the number of times the functions of the image forming device 20 have been used for each user based on the received usage history data.

For example, the usage data collection unit 13 receives data from the image forming device 20 indicating the history of user A's use of the copy function, and adds 1 to the number of times user A has used the copy function.

The usage status determination unit 14 determines whether or not there is a second user whose usage status is similar to that of the first user, based on the collected usage status data. For example, to determine the setting values to recommend to user A (first user), the usage status determination unit 14 searches the usage status data for user B (second user) whose usage status is similar to that of user A. The determination of whether or not there is similarity is realized by a method of calculating the similarity of data such as the number of times each function is used or the ratio of the number of times each function is used.

The recommended setting information output unit 15 outputs recommended setting information indicating setting values of the image forming device 20 recommended for each user based on the collected usage data 902 and user setting information 903. Specifically, when the usage status determination unit 14 determines that there is a second user whose usage status is similar to that of the first user, the recommended setting information output unit 15 outputs recommended setting information in which the setting values included in the setting information of the second user included in the user setting information 903 are the recommended setting values.

For example, if the usage status determination unit 14 determines that the usage status of user B is similar to that of user A, the recommended setting information output unit 15 outputs recommended setting information indicating the setting values of user B as the setting values recommended for user A.

The user setting information update unit 16 updates the setting information of the first user among the user setting information 903 stored in the storage unit 11 with the setting values of the image forming device 20 recommended for the first user. Specifically, the user setting information update unit 16 updates the setting information of the first user based on a request from the image forming device 20.

Figure 5 shows an example of the functions of an image forming device.

The image forming device 20 includes an authentication request unit 21, a user setting acquisition unit 22, a recommended setting value reflection operation acceptance unit 23, a user individual processing execution unit 24, and a usage history transmission unit 25.

The authentication request unit 21 requests the information processing device 10 to authenticate the user. Specifically, the authentication request unit 21 transmits data indicating a combination of an email address and a password input by the user to the information processing device 10. Note that the information used for authentication is not limited to this, and may be a user ID, a PIN code, etc.

The user setting acquisition unit 22 acquires setting information for each user from the information processing device 10. Specifically, when a function that behaves differently depending on a setting value for each user, such as displaying a home screen, is to be realized after the authentication requested of the information processing device 10 by the authentication request unit 21 is successful, the user setting acquisition unit 22 acquires the setting information of the user from the information processing device 10.

The recommended setting value reflection operation receiving unit 23 receives the recommended setting information output from the recommended setting information output unit 15 of the information processing device 10, and displays the setting values included in the recommended setting information on the screen. Then, it receives an operation from the user to reflect the setting values included in the recommended setting information in the setting information of the authenticated user. A specific example of the screen to be displayed will be described later.

The user-individual process execution unit 24 executes individual processes for each user in order to realize functions that behave differently for each user. For example, in a copy function that reads an image on a sheet of paper and prints the read image on another sheet of paper, the user can set a setting value as to whether to automatically determine whether to print in color or black and white based on the read image.

In this case, if the setting value of user A is a value indicating automatic determination, the user individual process execution unit 24 executes a process to automatically determine whether to print in color or black and white based on the scanned image when realizing the copy function of user A.

The usage history transmission unit 25 transmits usage history data indicating the history of use of functions of the image forming device 20 by an authenticated user to the information processing device 10. For example, when an authenticated user A uses a copy function, the usage history transmission unit 25 transmits data including a user ID indicating user A, a function name indicating the copy function, the date and time of use, etc., to the information processing device 10 as usage history data.

Figure 6 shows an example of user information.

User information 901 includes the following items: user ID, username, email address, and password.

The value of the "User ID" item is an identifier for identifying the user.

The value of the "User name" item is the user's name, etc.

The value of the "Email address" field is the user's email address.

The value of the "Password" item is the password for authentication.

The user information 901 shown in FIG. 6 is an example of information for authentication, and may be other information. For example, if authentication is performed using a PIN code, the user information 901 includes the PIN code as an item.

Figure 7 shows an example of usage data.

Usage status data 902 includes the following items: usage status ID, usage status name, user ID, and value.

The value of the "Usage ID" item is an identifier for identifying the usage status.

The value of the "Usage name" item is the name of the usage.

The value of the "User ID" item is an identifier for identifying the user.

The value of the "Value" item is a value that indicates the usage status. For example, if the usage status name is "Number of times copies were made with the number of sheets changed," the value of the "Value" item is a number that indicates the number of times copies were made with the number of sheets changed.

Figure 8 shows an example of user setting information.

User setting information 903 includes the following items: function ID, function name, setting ID, setting name, user ID, and setting value.

The value of the item "Function ID" is an identifier for identifying the function.

The value of the item "Function name" is the name of the function.

The value of the item "Setting ID" is an identifier for identifying the setting.

The value of the "Setting name" item is the name of the setting.

The value of the "User ID" item is an identifier for identifying the user.

The value in the "Setting value" item is the setting value for each user.

For example, according to the user setting information 903 shown in FIG. 8, the image forming device 20 performs binding when copying is performed by the operation of user "U0002", but does not perform binding when copying is performed by the operation of user "U0003".

Next, the operation of the information processing system 1 will be described.

Figure 9 shows an example of the processing flow of an image forming device.

When the image forming device 20 receives a start-up operation or a return operation from the power saving mode from the user, the authentication request unit 21 of the image forming device 20 accepts an input operation of authentication information (step S101). Note that the image forming device 20 may execute the process of step S101 when executing a process that requires authentication. Specifically, the authentication request unit 21 displays a login screen.

Next, the authentication request unit 21 requests authentication from the information processing device 10 (step S102). Specifically, the authentication request unit 21 transmits the input information to the information processing device 10 and receives information indicating the authentication result as a response.

The image forming device 20 determines whether the authentication result is successful (step S103). If the image forming device 20 determines that the authentication result is not successful (step S103: No), the process ends.

When the image forming device 20 determines that the authentication result is successful (step S103: Yes), the user setting acquisition unit 22 acquires the user setting information 903 from the information processing device 10 (step S104).

Next, the recommended setting value reflection operation receiving unit 23 determines whether or not there is user setting information for the authenticated user (step S105). Here, if the processing in step S101 is authentication for a specific function, the recommended setting value reflection operation receiving unit 23 may determine whether or not there is a setting value for that function.

When the recommended setting value reflection operation receiving unit 23 determines that there is no user setting information (step S105: No), it acquires information indicating the setting values recommended for the authenticated user from the information processing device 10 (step S106).

Next, the recommended setting value reflection operation receiving unit 23 displays the setting values recommended to the authenticated user on the screen (step S107). Then, the recommended setting value reflection operation receiving unit 23 determines whether or not an operation to reflect the recommended setting values has been received from the user (step S108).

When the recommended setting value reflection operation receiving unit 23 determines that no operation to reflect the recommended setting value has been received from the user (step S108: No), it ends the process.

When the recommended setting value reflection operation receiving unit 23 determines that an operation to reflect recommended setting values has been received from the user (step S108: Yes), it requests the information processing device 10 to update the user setting information (step S109). Specifically, the recommended setting value reflection operation receiving unit 23 transmits to the information processing device 10 information including a user ID indicating the authenticated user, and a function ID, a setting ID, and a setting value as information indicating the recommended setting value.

Then, the user-individual process execution unit 24 executes the user-individual process (step S110). Also, in the process of step S105, if the recommended setting value reflection operation acceptance unit 23 determines that there is user setting information (step S105: Yes), the process proceeds to step S110.

In the process of step S110, the user individual process execution unit 24 executes individual processing for each user based on the user setting information acquired in step S105 or the information indicating the recommended setting values acquired in the process of step S106.

After completing the process shown in FIG. 9, the image forming device 20 may execute a process common to the user.

Figure 10 shows an example of the processing flow of an information processing device.

When the authentication unit 12 of the information processing device 10 receives an authentication request from the image forming device 20, it authenticates the user (step S201). Specifically, the authentication unit 12 compares the information received from the image forming device 20 with the user information 901, and determines whether the user information 901 contains information that matches the received information. Then, the authentication unit 12 transmits the authentication result to the image forming device 20.

The usage data collection unit 13 of the information processing device 10 collects usage data (step S202). Specifically, the usage data collection unit 13 receives usage history data indicating the history of function usage from the image forming device 20, and tally up the number of times the functions of the image forming device 20 have been used for each user based on the received usage history data.

The usage data collection unit 13 may collect usage data at other times. For example, the usage data collection unit 13 may collect usage data by batch processing executed once a day.

The information processing device 10 transmits the user setting information in response to a request from the user setting acquisition unit 22 of the image forming device 20 (step S203).

Next, in response to a request from the image forming device 20, the usage status determination unit 14 of the information processing device 10 determines whether or not there is a user (second user) whose usage status is similar to that of the authenticated user (first user) (step S204).

Specifically, the usage status determination unit 14 determines whether the usage status of the first user is similar to that of each user by using a method of calculating the similarity of data such as the number of times each function is used and the ratio of the number of times each function is used, and determines whether a second user exists.

For example, based on the usage data 902 shown in FIG. 7, the usage status determination unit 14 determines that there is a user "U0004" whose usage status is similar to that of the authenticated user "U0001."

When the usage status determination unit 14 determines that there is no second user whose usage status is similar to that of the first user (step S204: No), it terminates the process.

In addition, if the usage status determination unit 14 determines that there is a second user whose usage status is similar to that of the first user (step S204: Yes), the recommended setting information output unit 15 acquires the user setting information of the second user (step S205) and transmits recommended setting information indicating the setting values included in the acquired user setting information to the image forming device 20 (step S206).

When the user setting information update unit 16 receives a request from the recommended setting value reflection operation reception unit 23 of the image forming device 20, it updates the user setting information 903 stored in the memory unit 11 (step S208). Specifically, the user setting information update unit 16 receives information indicating a user ID, function ID, setting ID, and setting value from the image forming device 20, and updates the setting value associated with the received user ID, function ID, and setting ID with the received setting value.

Figure 11 shows an example of a display screen of an image forming device.

When the image forming device 20 receives an operation from user A to activate the copy function, it executes the process of step S105 shown in FIG. 9, and if it determines that there is no user setting information for user A's copy function, it displays the screen shown in FIG. 11(a).

Next, the image forming device 20 displays the screen shown in FIG. 11(b), and upon receiving the selection of "Yes," executes the process of step S106 and displays the screen shown in FIG. 11(c) while waiting for processing by the information processing device 10.

Next, when the information processing device 10 executes the process of step S206 shown in FIG. 10, the image forming device 20 executes the process of step S107 shown in FIG. 9 and displays the screen shown in FIG. 11(d).

The screen shown in FIG. 11(d) displays the setting values of user B, whose usage is similar to that of user A. When user A selects "Apply these settings," the image forming device 20 determines in the process of step S108 shown in FIG. 9 that an operation to reflect the recommended setting values has been received, and executes the process of step S109.

Then, when the information processing device 10 executes the process of step S207 and updates the user setting information of user A, the image forming device 20 displays the screen shown in FIG. 11(e). When user A selects "Execute", the image forming device 20 executes the process of step S110 shown in FIG. 9.

Since User A's user setting information has been updated, the next time User A activates the copy function, the setting values shown in Figures 11(d) and 11(e) will be initially displayed.

According to the information processing system 1 of this embodiment, the recommended setting values are determined based on data indicating the user's usage, so that realistic setting values can be recommended based on the setting values set by users with similar preferences, behavioral patterns, etc.

In addition, an information processing device 10 separate from the image forming device 20 can collect data indicating user usage from multiple image forming devices 20 and determine recommended setting values, enabling highly accurate processing based on information from many users.

In the above-described embodiment, an example was shown in which the recommended setting information output unit 15 of the information processing device 10 outputs the setting values of a second user determined to be similar to a first user as recommended setting information to be recommended to the first user. However, the setting values to be recommended to the first user may be other values. For example, the recommended setting values may be determined by selecting multiple similar users and extracting the average setting values of the selected multiple users.

For example, if users B, C, and D who are similar to user A are selected and their respective settings are "black and white, with binding, 2 in 1", "black and white, no binding, no aggregation", and "color, with binding, no aggregation", the setting value of "black and white, with binding, no aggregation" may be recommended as the average setting value. In this example, the resulting recommended setting value does not completely match any of the settings of user B, user C, or user D.

In the above embodiment, the recommended setting value reflection operation receiving unit 23 of the image forming device 20 displays setting values recommended to a user who does not have user setting information. However, setting values may also be recommended to a user who has user setting information. In this way, the user who set the setting values can be given an opportunity to consider changing their own setting values by referring to the setting values of other users.

In the above-described embodiment, an example has been shown in which the image forming device 20 transmits usage history data, and the information processing device 10 compiles the received usage history data to generate data indicating the usage status. However, the image forming device 20 may also compile usage history data, generate data indicating the usage status, and transmit the generated usage status data to the information processing device 10.

In the above-described embodiment, an example has been shown in which the user setting information referenced by the image forming device 20 is stored in the storage unit 11 of the information processing device 10. However, the user setting information may be stored in the image forming device 20 or another device such as an LDAP (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) server. In this case, the information processing device 10 may periodically receive the user setting information from the image forming device 20 or another device such as an LDAP server, or may receive the user setting information from the image forming device 20 or another device such as an LDAP server in the processing of step S205 shown in FIG. 10.

The devices described in each embodiment represent only one of multiple computing environments for implementing the embodiments disclosed herein.

In one embodiment, the information processing device 10 may be configured as an information processing system, such as a cloud service or a web service, including multiple computing devices, such as a server cluster. The multiple computing devices may be configured to communicate with each other via any type of communication link, including a network, shared memory, etc., and may perform the processing disclosed herein.

Furthermore, the information processing device 10 and the image forming device 20 can be configured to share the disclosed processing steps in various combinations. Furthermore, each element of the information processing device 10 and the image forming device 20 may be integrated into a single server device, or may be separated into multiple devices.

Each function of the embodiments described above can be realized by one or more processing circuits. In this specification, the term "processing circuit" includes a processor programmed to execute each function by software, such as a processor implemented by an electronic circuit, and devices such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), DSP (Digital Signal Processor), FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), and conventional circuit modules designed to execute each function described above.

In the above-described embodiment, an image forming device is shown as an example of a device. However, the device is not limited to an image forming device as long as it has a communication function. The device may be, for example, a PJ (Projector), an output device such as digital signage, a HUD (Head Up Display) device, industrial machinery, medical equipment, network home appliances, automobiles (Connected Cars), notebook PCs (Personal Computers), mobile phones, tablet terminals, game consoles, PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), digital cameras, wearable PCs, or desktop PCs.

The present invention has been described above based on each embodiment, but the present invention is not limited to the requirements shown in the above embodiments. These points can be changed without departing from the spirit of the present invention, and can be appropriately determined according to the application form.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Information processing system 10 Information processing device 11 Storage unit 12 Authentication unit 13 Usage data collection unit 14 Usage determination unit 15 Recommended setting information output unit 16 User setting information update unit 20 Image forming device 21 Authentication request unit 22 User setting acquisition unit 23 Recommended setting value reflection operation acceptance unit 24 User individual processing execution unit 25 Usage history transmission unit 30 Communication network

JP 2010-268345 A

Claims (9)

An information processing system including a device and an information processing device connected to the device via a network,
The device comprises:
a usage history transmission unit that transmits usage history data indicating a history of usage of the device by an authenticated user to the information processing device;
The information processing device includes:
a usage status data collection unit that receives the usage history data from the device and collects usage status data indicating a usage status of the device for each user;
a usage status determination unit that determines whether or not there is a second user whose usage status is similar to that of a first user based on the collected usage status data, based on a similarity in data including the number of times functions of the device are used or the ratio of the number of times each function is used;
a recommended setting information output unit that outputs recommended setting information for each user of the device to the device based on the collected usage data and setting information of the device for each user,
The device comprises:
a recommended setting value reflection operation receiving unit that receives the setting information output from the recommended setting information output unit, displays setting values included in the setting information, and receives an operation from the authenticated user to reflect the setting values included in the setting information in the setting information of the authenticated user;
Information processing system. the device includes a user setting acquisition unit that acquires setting information of the authenticated user,
the recommended setting value reflection operation receiving unit displays the setting information output from the recommended setting information output unit when there is no setting information of the user acquired by the user setting acquisition unit.
The information processing system according to claim 1 . The device comprises:
an authentication request unit that requests the information processing device to authenticate a user;
The information processing device includes:
An authentication unit that performs user authentication in response to a request from the device.
3. The information processing system according to claim 1 or 2. a usage status data collection unit that collects usage status data indicating a usage status of the device for each user;
a usage status determination unit that determines whether or not there is a second user whose usage status is similar to that of a first user based on the collected usage status data, based on a similarity in data including the number of times functions of the device are used or the ratio of the number of times each function is used;
a recommended setting information output unit that outputs recommended setting information indicating setting values of the device that are recommended for each user, based on the collected usage data and setting information of the device for each user.
Information processing device. when the usage status determination unit determines that the second user is present, the recommended setting information output unit outputs the setting information indicating setting values of the device recommended to the first user based on setting information of the second user.
The information processing device according to claim 4. A storage unit that stores setting information of the device for each user;
a user setting information update unit that updates the setting information of the first user stored in the storage unit with a setting value of the device recommended for the first user,
The information processing device according to claim 5 . the usage data collection unit collects, as the usage data, a number of times each function of the device is used for each user;
The information processing device according to claim 4 . 1. A computer-implemented method comprising:
collecting usage data indicative of device usage by each user;
determining whether or not there is a second user whose usage situation is similar to that of the first user based on the collected usage situation data, based on a similarity in data including the number of times functions of the device are used or the ratio of the number of times each function is used;
and outputting setting information for each user of the recommended device based on the collected usage data and setting information for the device for each user.
Recommended setting method. On the computer,
collecting usage data indicative of device usage by each user;
determining whether or not there is a second user whose usage situation is similar to that of the first user based on the collected usage situation data, based on a similarity in data including the number of times functions of the device are used or the ratio of the number of times each function is used;
outputting recommended setting information for each user of the device based on the collected usage data and setting information for the device for each user;
A program for executing.

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