Information processing system, information processing method, storage medium, and information processing apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11775240-B2
Application number	US-202217692181-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 11, 2022
Priority date	Mar 18, 2021
Publication date	Oct 3, 2023
Grant date	Oct 3, 2023

Abstract

An information processing system includes processing circuitry. The processing circuitry is configured to: acquire profile information including a profile to be applied to print output from a first company system; manage the profile information acquired from the first company system; and distribute the profile information to a second company system to apply the profile information to a job executed by a printing machine of the second company system.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An information processing system, comprising:
processing circuitry configured to:
acquire profile information including a profile to be applied to print output from a first company system, the profile information being data in which a usage fee is set;
register the profile information in a memory in response to a sales registration request from the first company system and manage the profile information; and
distribute, to a second company system, particular profile information indicated by a purchase request from the second company system among the profile information registered in the memory so as to apply the particular profile information to a job executed by a printing machine of the second company system.

2. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:
encrypt the profile information acquired from the first company system; and
distribute the encrypted profile information to the second company system.

3. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:
acquire, from the first company system, the profile information having been encrypted using a first private key of the first company system;
decrypt the profile information with a first public key of the first company system;
encrypt the particular profile information with a second public key of the second company system; and
distribute the particular profile information encrypted with the second public key to the second company system that can decrypt the profile information with a second private key.

4. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:
acquire, from the first company system, the profile information to be applied to a job that is determined to be unexecutable by a printing machine of the first company system;
determine a printing machine of a company system, other than the first company system, that can execute the job to which the profile information is applied; and
distribute the job and the profile information to the second company system that is the company system having the printing machine determined.

5. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:
set a fee based on the profile information; and
notify the second company system of the fee when the particular profile information is distributed to the second company system.

6. The information processing system according to claim 5 , wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to automatically determine the fee of the profile information based on one or more indexes and display the fee in response to the purchase request.

7. The information processing system according to claim 6 , wherein
when the second company system performs a print job received by the first company system from a customer, the processing circuitry is configured to execute processing to pay at least a part of a print job fee paid from the customer to the first company system to the second company system, and
when the second company system acquires profile information necessary for the print job registered by the first company system, the processing circuitry is configured to charge a profile fee set by the processing circuitry on the second company system.

8. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:
transmit, to the second company system, a list of pieces of profile information that satisfy a use condition of the printing machine held by the second company system, among the profile information registered in the memory; and
distribute the particular profile information, having been selected from the list in the second company system, to the second company system.

9. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein when the purchase request from the second company system includes a request for ink or a recording medium indicated by the particular profile information of the purchase request, the processing circuitry is configured to order the ink or the recording medium.

10. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the particular profile information includes an, upper limit number of uses or a usage expiration date.

11. The information processing system according to claim 10 , wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to request deletion of the profile included in the particular profile information when the upper limit number of uses or the usage expiration date indicated by the particular profile information is exceeded for the printing machine of the second company system.

12. An information processing method comprising:
acquiring, from a first company system, profile information including a profile to be applied to print output, the profile information being data in which a usage fee is set;
registering the profile information in a memory in response to a sales registration request from the first company system and managing the profile information; and
distributing, to a second company system, particular profile information indicated by a purchase request from the second company system among the profile information registered in the memory so as to apply the particular profile information to a job executed by a printing machine of the second company system.

13. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer executable instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to:
acquire, from a first company system, profile information including a profile to be applied to print output, the profile information being data in which a usage fee is set;
register the profile information in a memory in response to a sales registration request from the first company system and manage the profile information; and
distribute, to a second company system, particular profile information indicated by a purchase request from the second company system among the profile information registered in the memory so as to apply the particular profile information to a job executed by a printing machine of the second company system.

14. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the profile information further includes a color profile applied during execution of a print job and is data in which information related to a profile including the usage fee is set.

15. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the profile information is data in which a usage limit is further set.

16. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the profile information is data in which a paper type or an ink type is further set.

17. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the profile information is data in which an expiration date is further set.

18. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the profile information and job information regarding the job are transmitted in separate communications.

Assignees

• Matsushima Hiroyuki
• Ricoh Co Ltd

Inventors

• Matsushima Hiroyuki

Classifications

• G06F3/126 Primary

  Job scheduling, e.g. queuing, determine appropriate device · CPC title

• G06F3/1207

  resulting in the user being informed about print result after a job submission · CPC title

• G06F3/1208

  resulting in improved quality of the output result, e.g. print layout, colours, workflows, print preview · CPC title

• G06F3/1239

  Restricting the usage of resources, e.g. usage or user levels, credit limit, consumables, special fonts · CPC title

• G06Q30/0207 Primary

  Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates · CPC title