JP7563110B2 - Control program, terminal - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a technology for notifying whether the firmware of an image forming device can be updated.

Patent document 1 describes a terminal that notifies the user through a user interface that the firmware of an image forming device can be updated when the firmware can be updated. Specifically, the terminal checks with the server whether a new version of firmware is stored, and determines whether the firmware can be updated based on the check result.

JP 2019-66999 A

If a terminal frequently checks the firmware version with the server, the communication load on the server may become high. However, there is also concern that a delay in updating firmware in an image forming device may adversely affect the operation of the image forming device.

The present invention has been developed in consideration of the above problems, and aims to achieve a good balance between suppressing an increase in the communication load on the server and optimizing the timing of firmware updates.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention relates to a control program executable by a controller of a terminal that has a communication interface and a user interface and can communicate with an image forming device and a server via the communication interface. By executing the control program, the controller executes an acquisition process for acquiring firmware version information from the image forming device via the communication interface, a confirmation process for checking the firmware version corresponding to the image forming device with the server if the acquired version information is the same as the previously acquired version information, and not checking the firmware version with the server if the acquired version information is different from the previously acquired version information, and a notification process for notifying via the user interface if it is confirmed that the firmware version has been updated.

In the above configuration, if the version information has changed from the previously obtained version information, the firmware version is not checked with the server. On the other hand, if the version information is the same as the previously obtained version information, the firmware may be a newer version, so the firmware version is checked with the server. This makes it possible to achieve a good balance between preventing an increase in the communication load on the server and optimizing the timing of firmware updates, compared to checking the firmware version uniformly with the server at regular intervals.

The present invention can be realized in various forms, and in addition to being an invention of a control program executed by a computer, it can also be realized as an invention of a terminal that realizes each function by a control program.

The present invention makes it possible to achieve a good balance between suppressing an increase in communication load on the server and optimizing the timing of firmware updates.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of an image forming system. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining firmware information. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining device management information. FIG. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an information screen. 4 is a timing chart illustrating a procedure of a process executed by the terminal. 7 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the process executed in S16 of FIG. 6; 4 is a timing chart illustrating a procedure of a process executed by the terminal. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a download instruction screen.

First Embodiment
The scanning system according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings.

The system 100 shown in FIG. 1 includes a terminal 10, a server 30, and MFPs (Multifunction Peripheral/Printer/Products) 50, 58, and 59. The terminal 10 and the MFPs 50, 58, and 59 are connected to a local area network (LAN) 200. The LAN 200 may be wired or wireless, or may be a combination of wired and wireless. The LAN 200 is connected to the Internet 201, and the server 30 is connected to the Internet 201.

The configuration of MFP 50 will be described. Note that the hardware configuration of MFPs 58 and 59 is the same as that of MFP 50, so description will be omitted. MFP 50 includes a bus 51, a communication IF 52, a printer unit 53, a reading unit 54, a user IF 55, a controller 56, and a memory 57. Each unit constituting MFP 50 is connected to be able to communicate via bus 51. IF is an abbreviation for Interface.

The communication IF 52 connects the MFP 50 to the LAN 200 or the Internet 201 in accordance with a specific communication protocol. The user IF 55 is an interface between the MFP's controller 56 and the user, and in this embodiment includes a touch panel and operation keys. The controller 56 controls the operations of the printer unit 53, the reading unit 54, and the user IF 55.

The printer unit 53 executes a print operation to print an image on a recording medium such as a sheet or a disk. The printer unit 53 may use an inkjet method to eject ink as a recording medium onto the recording medium, or an electrophotographic method to form a toner image on a photoreceptor and transfer the toner image to the recording medium. The reader unit 54 executes a scan operation to read an image recorded on a document and generate scan data. The controller 56 of the MFP 50 causes the reader unit 54 to read a document set on an ADF (Auto Document Feeder) or a reading table to create scan data, and can transmit the created scan data to the server 30 or the terminal 10 via the communication IF 52. The MFP 50 may also be capable of executing a composite operation that combines multiple operations. A copy operation that combines a print operation by the printer unit 53 and a scan operation by the reader unit 54 is an example of a composite operation.

The controller 56 is configured with a CPU, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), etc., and controls each component that configures the MFP 50. In this embodiment, the memory 57 is configured, for example, by combining a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), and a flash memory. The memory 57 may also be a storage medium that can be read by the controller 56, which is a computer. Storage media also include recording media such as CD-ROM and DVD-ROM. The same applies to the memories 17 and 35 described below.

Firmware 41 (hereafter referred to as FW) and MIB (Management Information Base) 42 are stored in memory 57 as data referenced by controller 56. FW 41 is a program for controlling each operation in MFP 50. MIB 42 stores identification information for identifying MFP 50, and information indicating the operations and capabilities that MFP 50 can execute. Furthermore, version information indicating the current FW version is stored in MIB 42. The version information is information for identifying the FW version, and is written in numbers or letters. MIB 42 stores version information of the current FW stored in memory 57 of MFP 50.

Next, the configuration of the server 30 will be described. The server 30 includes a bus 31, a server-side CPU 32, a user IF 33, a communication IF 34, and a memory 35. Each component of the server 30 is connected to each other so as to be able to communicate with each other via the bus 31.

The data storage area of memory 35 stores FW that can be downloaded to MFPs 50, 58, and 59, and firmware information 43. As shown in FIG. 2, the firmware information 43 stores the model name of the device in association with version information indicating the version of the FW corresponding to each device. In FIG. 2, the model name "MFP-0001" is the model name of MFP 50, the model name "MFP-0002" is the model name of MFP 58, and the model name "MFP-0003" is the model name of MFP 59. When the FW is updated to a new version, the server-side CPU 32 stores the new FW version information in the corresponding firmware information 43 field.

Next, the configuration of the terminal 10 will be described. The terminal 10 is a smartphone or a tablet terminal. The terminal 10 includes a bus 11, a terminal side CPU 12, a user IF 13, a communication IF 16, and a memory 17. These components are capable of communicating with each other via the bus 11.

The user IF 13 includes a touch panel 14 and operation keys 15. The touch panel 14 has a touch sensor and outputs a signal according to the detection result by the touch sensor. In this embodiment, "touch" includes the general operation of bringing an input medium into contact with the display screen of the touch panel 14. Specifically, a tap operation in which the touched input medium is separated from the touch panel 14 within a predetermined time will be described as an example of touch, but a long touch operation, a slide operation, a flick operation, a pinch-in operation, a pinch-out operation, etc. may also be used. In addition, bringing the input medium close to a position where the distance between the input medium and the touch panel 14 is very small may also be included in the concept of "touch" described above. Furthermore, the input medium may be a user's finger or a touch pen, etc.

The communication IF 16 is capable of performing wireless communication of the Wi-Fi® (registered trademark) system based on, for example, the IEEE 802.11 standard or a standard equivalent thereto. The communication IF 16 may also perform short-range wireless communication with the MFP 50 using Bluetooth® or the like, or may perform wireless communication using a mobile communication system via a base station.

The terminal CPU 12 controls each part of the terminal 10 by executing a program stored in the memory 17. In this embodiment, the terminal CPU 12 is an example of a controller. The memory 17 stores an OS 20 (Operating System), a control program 21, and device management information 40. In the following, the terminal CPU 12 that executes a program may be referred to simply as the program name. For example, the description "the control program 21" may mean "the terminal CPU 12 that executes the control program 21."

In this embodiment, the processing is mainly performed by the CPU according to the instructions written in the program. In other words, the processing such as "judging", "extracting", "selecting", "calculating", "deciding", "identifying", "obtaining", "receiving", and "controlling" in the following description represent the processing of the CPU or the controller. Processing by the CPU also includes hardware control via the OS 20. Note that "obtaining" is used as a concept that does not require a request. In other words, the processing of receiving data without the control program 21 requesting it is also included in the concept of "the CPU obtaining data". In addition, "data" in this specification is expressed in a computer-readable format. Data with the same substantial meaning but different formats are treated as the same data. The same applies to "information" in this specification.

The OS 20 has an API (Application Programming Interface) that enables the control program 21 to use the functions of the OS 20, to communicate with the server 30 and each MFP 50, 58, 59, and to use the functions of other programs. The control program 21 uses the functions of the OS 20 to cause the MFPs that can be connected via the communication IF 16 to perform print operations, scan operations, fax operations, etc.

The data storage area of the memory 17 stores device management information 40 shown in FIG. 3. The device management information 40 is information that manages FW version information and the history of FW version checks for devices registered as targets to be controlled by the terminal 10. Details of the device management information 40 will be described later.

Next, a procedure for making the MFP 50 execute a predetermined function (print operation, scan operation) in response to an operation on the terminal 10 will be described. When the control program of the terminal 10 accepts an operation to display the top screen via the user IF 13, it causes the user IF 13 to display the top screen 60 shown in FIG. 4. The top screen 60 is a screen for accepting instructions for devices registered by the terminal 10 as targets to be controlled, and in this embodiment includes a function display area 61 and a device designation area 65.

The function display area 61 is an area that accepts the specification of a function to be executed by a specified device. In the function display area 61 shown in FIG. 4, an operation icon 63 that accepts an instruction to execute a "print operation" on the specified device, and an operation icon 64 that accepts an instruction to execute a "scan operation" are displayed. When the control program 21 accepts a specification operation of the operation icon 63 on the top screen 60, it generates print job data and transmits the generated print job data to the specified device.

The device designation area 65 is an area that displays the model name of the device that is currently being controlled by the terminal 10. In Fig. 4, the device designation area 65 displays "MFP-0001", which is the model name of the MFP 50.
When the control program 21 accepts an instruction operation on the device designation area 65 via the user IF 13, it causes the user IF 13 to display a screen for accepting a change to the model name displayed in the device designation area 65. By accepting a change to the model name displayed in the device designation area 65 via the user IF 13, the control program 21 can change the device to be controlled.

When the control program 21 accepts a designation operation of the information icon 62 on the top screen 60 via the user IF 13, it displays the information screen 70 shown in FIG. 5. The information screen 70 includes a plurality of display fields that display various information related to the device to be controlled (MFP 10 in FIG. 5). Specifically, the information screen 70 includes a display field 71 that displays the model name of the device designated on the device designation area 65, a display field 72 that displays the FW version of the designated device, a display field 73 that displays the IP address of the designated device, and a display field 74 that displays the serial number of the designated device. In this embodiment, when the FW stored in the server 30 is updated to a new version, an update notification icon 76 that indicates that the FW version has changed is displayed in the display field 73. Note that by designating the display field 71 and changing the model name, the values of each display field included in the information screen 70 can be changed to values corresponding to the changed model name.

The control program 21 needs to inquire about the FW version from the server 30 in order to determine whether the version of the FW stored in the server 30 has been updated. However, frequent inquiries to the server 30 may increase the communication load on the server 30. However, there is also a concern that a delay in updating the FW may adversely affect the operation of the device. Therefore, in this embodiment, the control program 21 executes each process so as to strike a good balance between the frequency of checking the version with the server and optimizing the FW update.

Next, the procedure for the process of checking the FW version for the server 30 will be described with reference to FIG. 6. In FIG. 6, the functions of the control program 21 are functionally shown as a viewer 22, a status monitoring unit 23, a status acquisition unit 24, and an update check unit 25. The process shown in FIG. 6 is executed when the top screen 60 shown in FIG. 4 is displayed on the user IF 13.

In step 10 (hereinafter, S10), the viewer 22 determines the device that will be the target of the current process shown in FIG. 6. In this embodiment, a priority order is set for checking version information for multiple devices currently registered in the device management information 40. Specifically, the control program 21 assigns a higher priority to devices currently registered in the device management information 40 that have been used more recently.

As shown in FIG. 3, in the device management information 40, the "version information," "last use date and time," and "last confirmation time" of the FW are registered in association with the "model name" of the device that the terminal 10 can control. The last use date and time is the time when the device was last used. The last confirmation time is the time when the FW version was last confirmed with the server 30. In the device management information 40 shown in FIG. 3, the MFP 50 (model name is "MFP-0001") with the most recent last use date and time is determined as the target device this time. Note that, in the next process of FIG. 6, the MFP 59 (model name is "MFP-0003") with the next most recent last use date and time is determined as the target device. Note that, in this embodiment, once the priority order is determined, the priority order is not changed until the process shown in FIG. 6 is executed for all devices registered in the device management information 40. Also, if there is only one device registered in the device management information 40, the priority order is not set and the registered device is determined as the target device.

In S11, the viewer 22 judges whether or not a first period has elapsed since the top screen 60 was last displayed. The first period is, for example, one hour. If a negative judgment is made in S10, the process of FIG. 6 is terminated. On the other hand, if a positive judgment is made in S10, the viewer 22 in S12 sends a confirmation request for an update to the FW of the target device to the status monitoring unit 23.

When the status monitoring unit 23 receives a request to check for an update, in S13, it sends a request to obtain FW version information to the status acquisition unit 24.

When the status acquisition unit 24 receives a request to acquire version information, in S14 it acquires the version information from the target device. In this embodiment, the control program 21 acquires the version information from the target device via the LAN 200 using the communication IF 16. This is to suppress an increase in the communication load when acquiring the version information, compared to when communication is performed via the Internet 201. Then, when the controller 56 of the MFP 50 receives a request to acquire version information, it reads out the version information registered in the MIB 42 and returns it to the terminal 10.

In S15, the status acquisition unit 24 returns the version information returned from the target device, the MFP 50, to the status monitoring unit 23. When the status monitoring unit 23 acquires the version information, in S16, it compares the acquired version information. FIG. 7 is a flowchart that explains the detailed procedure of the process executed by the status acquisition unit 24 in S16 of FIG. 6.

In S40, a comparison of version information on the target device is performed. Specifically, the version information obtained from the target device in S14 is compared with the version information on the target device stored in device management information 40 to determine whether the version information differs. If the FW of the target device has already been updated, the version information obtained from the target device has been changed to a new value, and therefore will be a different value from the version information stored in device management information 40.

In S41, it is determined whether the FW version information matches. If the version information matches and a positive judgment is made in S41, the process proceeds to S42, where the comparison result flag stored in memory 17 is set to a value indicating that the version information matches. On the other hand, if the version information does not match and a negative judgment is made in S41, the process proceeds to S43, where the comparison result flag stored in memory 17 is set to a value indicating that the version information does not match. The comparison result flag stored in memory 17 in S42 and S43 is erased on the condition that the current processing of FIG. 6 has ended. When the processing of S42 or S43 has ended, the process proceeds to S17.

Returning to FIG. 6, in S17, the status monitoring unit 23 refers to the value of the comparison result flag and determines whether or not the version information has been changed. If a positive determination is made in S17, the status monitoring unit 23 proceeds to S18 and stores the version information acquired from the target device in the device management information 40 as the FW version information of the current target device. In S19, the status monitoring unit 23 sets the update determination flag to a value indicating "not required." The update determination flag is a flag that indicates whether or not a FW update is currently required for the target device; if it is required, the value indicates "required," and if it is not required, the value indicates "not required."

In S20, the status monitoring unit 23 replies to the update confirmation request in S12 according to the value of the update determination flag set in S19. In this case, the status monitoring unit 23 replies that a FW update is not necessary. When the viewer 22 receives the reply in S20, it does not display the update notification icon 76 in the display field 73 on the information screen 70 shown in FIG. 5. In other words, it does not notify that a FW update is necessary.

On the other hand, if S17 is judged as negative, the status monitoring unit 23 proceeds to S21 and judges whether or not the update judgment flag is currently set to a value indicating "necessary". If S21 is judged as positive, the status monitoring unit 23 ends the process because the FW version was checked (processing of S25 described later) in the previous process of FIG. 6. On the other hand, if S21 is judged as negative, the status monitoring unit 23 proceeds to S22 and judges whether or not a second period has passed since the date and time when the previous check process (S25 described later) was performed. Specifically, the status monitoring unit 23 judges whether or not a second period has passed from the latest time of all the last check times registered in the device management information 40 to the current time. The second period is preferably a period equal to or longer than the first period and shorter than a third period described later. For example, the second period can be a period of one hour or more and six days or less. As a result, the FW version is checked at least after a period of the second period or more. If S22 is judged as negative, the process ends.

If S22 is judged as positive, the process proceeds to S23, where it is determined whether or not a third period or more has passed since the last check time of the current target device (in this embodiment, MFP 50) among the last check times stored in the device management information 40. The third period is a period longer than the first period and is preferably a period longer than the second period. The third period is, for example, seven days. As a result, the FW version check for the same device is performed with an interval of at least the third period or more. If S23 is judged as negative, the process ends.

If S23 is judged as positive, the process proceeds to S24, and a request to confirm the FW version of the server 30, i.e., a request to start the confirmation process, is sent to the update check unit 25. Note that if any one of S21-S23 is judged as negative, the process in FIG. 6 is terminated. In other words, the confirmation process is not executed on the server 30.

When the update check unit 25 receives a request to start the confirmation process, in S25 it queries the server 30 about the FW version of the target device. Specifically, the update check unit 25 creates an XML request to query the FW version, and sends the created XML request to the server 30. In the XML request, the query about the FW version and the model name for specifying the target device are sent. The process of S25 executed by the update check unit 25 (control program 21) is an example of confirmation processing.

When the server-side CPU 32 of the server 30 receives the XML request, it refers to the firmware information 43 and checks the version information of the firmware of the specified target device (in this embodiment, the MFP 50). The server-side CPU 32 then returns the version information to the terminal 10 as an XML response.

Next, the procedure of processing after the terminal 10 returns an XML response from the server 30 will be described with reference to FIG. 8. In S30, the update check unit 25 judges whether or not an XML response has been received from the server 30. If a negative judgment is made in S30, the process waits. If the update check unit 25 receives an XML response from the server 30, it judges S30 as positive, and proceeds to S31. In S31, the update check unit 25 judges whether or not the version information of the FW indicated by the XML response is new version information. For example, if the version information included in the XML response differs from the version information stored in the device management information 40, the update check unit 25 judges that a new version of the FW is stored in the server 30.

If the version of the FW of the target device included in the XML request is newer, the update check unit 25 makes a positive judgment in S31, proceeds to S32, and sets the update judgment flag to a value indicating that a FW update is necessary. On the other hand, if the update check unit 25 makes a negative judgment in S31, the update check unit 25 proceeds to S33, and sets the update judgment flag to a value indicating that a FW update is not necessary.

In S34, the update check unit 25 notifies the status monitoring unit 23 that the update determination flag has been set. Upon receiving the notification that the update determination flag has been set, in S35, the status monitoring unit 23 updates the last check time of the target device stored in the device management information 40 to the current time.

In S36, the status monitoring unit 23 notifies the viewer 22 of the result of the confirmation process. In S37, the viewer 22 performs a notification process to notify whether or not a FW update is necessary, depending on the value of the update determination flag, which is the result of the confirmation process. Specifically, if the update determination flag has a value indicating "necessary", the viewer 22 displays an update notification icon 76 in the display field 73 on the information screen 70. On the other hand, if the update determination flag has a value indicating "not required", the viewer 22 does not display the update notification icon 76 in the display field 73 on the information screen 70. In this embodiment, the information screen 70 on which the update notification icon 76 is displayed is an example of a notification screen.

When the control program 21 receives a touch operation on the display field 73 via the user IF 13 while the update notification icon 76 is displayed in the display field 73, the control program 21 causes the user IF 13 to display a download instruction screen 80 shown in FIG. 9. The download instruction screen 80 is a screen that receives an instruction operation for downloading the FW from the server 30 to the target device. The download instruction screen 80 includes a start icon 81 that receives an instruction operation for the process of downloading the FW via the user IF 13.

When the control program 21 receives an instruction operation on the start icon 81, it causes the EWS (Embedded Web Server) of the MFP 50 to download web page data for FW download as a process for downloading the FW to the server 30. The EWS is a web server, and is a function realized by the controller 56 executing a program (not shown) stored in the memory 57. The control program 21 causes a download reception screen to be displayed on the touch panel 14 using the downloaded web page data. When the control program 21 receives an instruction operation on the download reception screen to specify the download of a new version of FW, it transmits information specifying the FW to be downloaded to the MFP 50.

The controller 56 of the MFP 50 requests the server 30 to download the specified FW based on the information sent from the terminal 10. As a result, the FW is downloaded from the server 30 to the MFP 50, and the controller 56 of the MFP 50 uploads the FW 41 stored in the memory 57.

The present embodiment described above can provide the following advantages.
If the FW version information in the MFP 50 has changed from the previously acquired version information, the control program 21 of the terminal 10 does not check the server 30 for a FW update. On the other hand, if the FW version information is the same as the previously acquired version information, the control program 21 of the terminal 10 checks the FW version information with the server 30. This makes it possible to achieve a good balance between suppressing an increase in the communication load on the server 30 and optimizing the timing of FW updates, compared to a case in which version information is checked uniformly from the server at regular intervals.

Multiple MFPs that are to be notified of FW updates are registered on the terminal 10, and the control program 21 checks the version information of the multiple MFPs registered in the device management information 40 individually with the server 30. This makes it possible to suppress an increase in the amount of data handled in one communication, compared to a case in which the FW version information of all MFPs is checked collectively with the server 30. As a result, a temporary increase in the communication load on the server 30 can be suppressed.

When the version information acquired from the target device is the same as the previously acquired version information, the control program 21 checks the version information with the server 30 on the condition that a second period has elapsed since the most recent of all the final times stored in the device management information 40. This makes it possible to suppress an increase in the communication load that accompanies the closer intervals between executions of the checking process with the server 30.

When the version information acquired from the target device is the same as the previously acquired version information, the control program 21 checks the version information with the server 30 on the condition that a third period has elapsed since the last time for the same device stored in the device management information 40. This prevents the intervals between execution of the check process for the server 30 for the same device from becoming too close, and thus further prevents an increase in the communication load on the server 30.

The control program 21 has a priority order for checking version information for multiple MFPs registered in the device management information 40, and checks version information from the server 30 in descending order of priority. This makes it possible to set different priorities for devices for which FW should be given priority for updating and MFPs for which priority is not given.

The control program 21 sets a higher priority to devices with more recent last usage dates. This allows the priority to be set according to the user's usage history.

The control program 21 obtains the version information from the image forming device via the LAN 200 through the communication IF 16. This allows the terminal 10 to suppress an increase in the communication load when obtaining the version information from the target device, compared to when communication is performed via the Internet 201.

The control program 21 displays, on the user IF 13, an update notification icon 76 indicating that a new version of the FW is stored in the server 30, and when an instruction operation is received on the information screen 70 on which the update notification icon 76 is displayed, executes processing for downloading the firmware from the server 30 to the target device. This makes it possible to receive an operation for processing to download the FW on a screen displayed on the terminal 10, thereby improving user convenience.

(Modification of the first embodiment)
6, the control program 21 may assign a higher priority to a device that is used more frequently. In this case, the control program 21 may refer to the device management information 40 to determine the frequency of use of each device in a predetermined period of time.

In S10 of FIG. 6, the control program 21 may set a higher priority for a device with an older last confirmation time stored in the device management information 40. Also, in S10 of FIG. 6, the control program 21 may set a higher priority for a device with a newer sales date.

When the control program 21 receives an instruction operation on the start icon 81 on the download instruction screen 80 shown in FIG. 9, the control program 21 may directly request the server 30 to download the new version of the FW to the MFP 50.

The control program 21 may not require that the second period has elapsed since the last time of the current process in FIG. 6 on all registered devices, as a condition for starting the confirmation process. In this case, the process shown in S22 in FIG. 6 may be deleted. The control program 21 may not require that the third period has elapsed since the last time of the current process in FIG. 6 on the same device, as a condition for starting the confirmation process. In this case, the process shown in S23 in FIG. 6 may be deleted. The order of S22 in FIG. 6 and S23 in FIG. 6 may also be reversed.

Second Embodiment
In the second embodiment, the configuration different from the first embodiment will be mainly described. In the second embodiment, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will not be repeated.

In this embodiment, when the control program 21 requests the target device to obtain version information in S14, it notifies the user IF 13 that communication will be performed according to the HTTP protocol. This is to make the user aware that communication will be performed according to the HTTP protocol without encryption. In this case, if the user performs an instruction operation to reject communication according to the HTTP protocol, the acquisition of version information in S14 may not be performed.

In the embodiment described above, the control program 21 notifies the user through the user IF 13 that communication will be performed according to the HTTP protocol before sending a request to obtain version information to the target device. This makes it possible to notify the user that communication is not encrypted by notifying the user through the user interface.

Other Embodiments
The technology disclosed in this specification is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be modified in various forms without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, the following modifications are also possible.
In each of the above-described embodiments, the control program 21, as the notification process, displays the update notification icon 76 on the information screen 70 in S37. Alternatively, the control program 21 may display the update notification icon 76 on the top screen 60 in S37 as the notification process.

The image forming device described above using an MFP50 is just one example, and the image forming device may be a device with only a single function, such as a printer or scanner device, as long as it has FW and is capable of updating the FW.

10: terminal, 12: terminal side CPU, 13: user IF, 30: server, 50, 60, 61: MFP

Claims (10)

A control program executable by a controller of a terminal that has a communication interface and a user interface and is capable of communicating with an image forming apparatus and a server via the communication interface,
The control program causes the controller to
an acquisition process for acquiring firmware version information from the image forming apparatus via the communication interface;
If the acquired version information is the same as the previously acquired version information, the server is contacted to confirm the version of the firmware corresponding to the image forming apparatus;
a confirmation process of not confirming the version of the firmware with the server when the acquired version information is different from the previously acquired version information;
a notification process for issuing a notification via the user interface when it is confirmed by the confirmation process that the firmware version is newer. a plurality of image forming apparatuses that are to be notified in the notification process are registered in the terminal;
2. The control program according to claim 1, wherein in the confirmation process, the version information of the registered image forming apparatuses is individually confirmed with the server. the acquiring process acquiring the version information of the firmware from the image forming apparatus for each first period;
In the confirmation process,
a time when the firmware version was last confirmed with respect to the server for each of the registered image forming apparatuses;
3. The control program according to claim 2, wherein when the version information acquired by the acquisition process is the same as the version information acquired previously, the version of the firmware is confirmed with the server on the condition that a second period has elapsed since the most recent of all the stored final times, and the second period is a period equal to or longer than the first period. the acquiring process acquiring version information of the firmware from the image forming apparatus for each first period;
In the confirmation process,
The last time the version of the firmware was confirmed with respect to the server is stored,
A control program as described in claim 2 or 3, wherein when the version information acquired by the acquisition process is the same as the version information acquired last time, the firmware version is confirmed with the server on the condition that a third period has elapsed since the last time corresponding to the same image forming device, and the third period is a period longer than the first period. The control program according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein in the confirmation process, a priority order is set for confirming the firmware version for the registered image forming devices, and the firmware version is confirmed with the server in descending order of priority. The control program according to claim 5, wherein in the confirmation process, the more frequently used the image forming device is, or the more recent the last time the image forming device was used, the higher the priority is. The control program according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein in the acquisition process, the version information is acquired from the image forming device via the communication interface through a local area network. In the acquisition process,
transmitting a request for acquiring the version information to the image forming apparatus via the communication interface in accordance with an HTTP protocol;
8. The control program according to claim 7, further comprising a step of notifying the user interface that communication will be performed according to an HTTP protocol before the request to obtain the version information is transmitted. the notification process includes displaying, on the user interface, a notification screen indicating that a new version of the firmware is stored in the server;
A control program according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the control program executes a process to cause the controller to download the firmware from the server to the image forming device when an instruction operation is received on the notification screen. A communication interface, a user interface, and a controller, the communication interface being capable of communicating with an image forming apparatus and a server;
The controller:
an acquisition process for acquiring firmware version information from the image forming apparatus via the communication interface;
If the acquired version information is the same as the previously acquired version information, the server is contacted to confirm the version of the firmware corresponding to the image forming apparatus;
a confirmation process of not confirming the version of the firmware with the server when the acquired version information is different from the previously acquired version information;
a notification process for issuing a notification via the user interface when it is confirmed by the confirmation process that the firmware version is newer.

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