Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.

Minolta Company, Ltd.

Konica Minolta, Inc.

Jiro Goto

Toshihisa Motosugi

Shin Ohba

Kana Yamauchi

Hiroshi Ootsuka

Kaoru Tada

Takashi Oikawa

Kenichi Morita

Akinori Yoshida

Katsuhisa Toyama

Tatsuji Nozawa

Yoshiharu Kurozasa

Haisheng Liang

Tomokazu Kato

Hiroshi Iwamoto

Taketoshi Yamahata

Tsuyoshi Yoneyama

Shinichi Asai

Yuji Kawamura

Masayuki Ito

Kenichi Matsumoto

Tatsuji Hirakawa

An image forming apparatus includes a processing portion, a storage portion, and a touch pad. The processing portion is adapted to accept input of a value for a prescribed processing condition for an image forming job. The storage portion is adapted to store the value accepted by the processing portion. The touch pad is adapted to accept a touch operation. The processing portion updates the value stored in the storage portion based on a manner of change in touch position resulting from a second touch operation on the touch pad while a first touch operation in a prescribed region of the touch pad continues.

Image forming apparatus, method of controlling the same, and recording medium

A user interface device which displays an operation key in a display unit using a predetermined design. The device includes: a history storing unit that stores a history record in which a content of a setting operation carried out by a user for each of past jobs that have been executed is recorded; a history retrieving unit that retrieves the history record in which the content of the setting that is the same as a current content of the setting is recorded; a calculating unit that calculates a total number of operations for each operation key based on the content of the setting recorded in the history record in which the same content of setting is recorded; and an operation key display type determining unit that estimates relative degrees of likelihood to be used by the user of the operation keys based on the total number of operations for each operation key, and determines, based on the estimation, a design to be used to display the operation key out of a group of designs including at least a first design for normal display and a second design for highlighted display.

User interface device

An image forming apparatus comprises: an image data obtainer that obtains image data by a Web browser from a Website via a network; a printer that prints out the obtained image data and other image data; and a billing portion that bills a usage fee if the Web browser is used, meanwhile discounts the usage fee to be billed if the Web browser is used and also the image data obtained by the Web browser is printed out by the printer.

Image forming apparatus, billing method thereof and recording medium

An image forming apparatus is provided with a determination portion that, in response to operation for giving instructions to enhance a security level thereof, determines whether or not a job is kept which is not to satisfy security requirements after the enhancement, an execution portion that, if the determination portion determines that such a job is kept, performs predetermined processing for satisfying the security requirements on the job with execution of the job ensured, and a security mode switching portion that, if the determination portion determines that such a job is kept, enhances the security level after the execution portion finishes the predetermined processing, and, if the determination portion determines that such a job is not kept, enhances the security level promptly.

Image forming apparatus and method for switching between security modes

Information equipment having a memory area for which access restrictions are set is provided. The information equipment makes a determination, in response to operation for turning a security mode into a security level enhanced mode, on data in the memory area, whether or not any one of the following conditions satisfy security requirements after the security level is enhanced: access restrictions set for the data itself; access restrictions set for the memory area; and authentication information for a user who has stored the data, and sends, to the user who has stored the corresponding data in the memory area or a user who has set the access restrictions for the memory area storing the corresponding data therein, a message to prompt one of the users to perform operation for satisfying the security requirements.

Information equipment, method for supporting operation thereof, and computer-readable storage medium for computer program

A plurality of image forming apparatuses connected with one another via a network each have a power management table A and a power management table B. Each image forming apparatus uses the power management table A to cumulate power amounts consumed therein by each user group, transmits cumulating results (the contents of the management table A) to other image forming apparatuses. The image forming apparatus receives the contents of the power management table A from the other image forming apparatuses, obtains a sum of consumption power amounts of each user group, using the received contents and the contents of its own power management table A, and updates relevant fields in the power management table B. The image forming apparatus prohibits execution of a new job submitted by a group whose consumption power amount is equal to or greater than a maximum power amount.

Image forming apparatus, power consumption restriction system, power consumption restriction program, and power consumption restriction method

An image forming apparatus has a first detector for detecting that a consumption article has reached its life, a second detector for detecting that the consumption article has reached a certain timing before its life, a third detector for detecting an application of power and/or releasing of a power saving mode of the image forming apparatus, a first controller for making a display portion display an alarm advising a replacement of the consumption article and for making the image forming apparatus inactivate, and a second controller for releasing the alarm display and enabling the use of the image forming apparatus when a specific input is operated during the displaying of the alarm on the display portion.

Image forming apparatus and control method thereof

In a client personal computer, when a user starts a remote copy program, the initial remote copy and setting screens are displayed on a screen. Together with this display, power consumption information and status information describing the operating state of each image processing device such as printers and scanners are collected over a network. This information is updated as necessary. The power consumption is estimated for each combination of image processing devices cooperatively processing a job based on the collected information. The combination having the least power consumption among the possible combinations is displayed on a screen. When a user presses the start key, operation specification information including specification for cooperatively executing a job are transmitted to each selected image processing device. In this way, the combination having the least power consumption is selected when a plurality of image processing devices connected on a network cooperatively process a job.

Method for managing image processing devices on a network

An image processing unit comprises a memory for storing original image data and a print start time therefor, and a reserve print function of reading the original image data from the memory and printing the same at the print start time. The image processing unit further has a monitor for monitoring consumed times for an interruption copy, paper supply and the like, an operator for inputting print data and a desired print end time, a computing element for operating a required time for a print operation on the basis of the print data, and a setter for setting a print start time for each original on the basis of the operating situation of the image processing unit and the required and desired end times for each original for avoiding overlapping of print operations for respective originals.

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Toyokawa, Japan

Jiro Goto