| US 7,617,399 B2 | ||
| Information providing device, method, program and recording medium, and user authentication device, method, program and recording medium | ||
| Jun Ebata, Tokyo (Japan) | ||
| Assigned to Ricoh Company, Ltd., Tokyo (Japan) | ||
| Filed on Mar. 19, 2004, as Appl. No. 10/803,896. | ||
| Claims priority of application No. 2003-078993 (JP), filed on Mar. 20, 2003; and application No. 2004-032085 (JP), filed on Feb. 09, 2004. | ||
| Prior Publication US 2004/0187009 A1, Sep. 23, 2004 | ||
| Int. Cl. G06F 21/00 (2006.01) | ||
| U.S. Cl. 713—185 [713/186; 705/50; 705/51] | 31 Claims |
| 1. An information providing device arranged in a multi-function peripheral system including multiple image formation applications
and a platform, the platform including an OS and at least one control service to control execution of a requested processing
according to a function call from one of the image formation applications, the information providing device comprising:
a provider association unit configured to associate a plurality of information providers, including first and second information
providers the plurality of information providers providing respective user information items, the provider association unit
comprising:
a first unit causing the first information provider to receive a first user information item, stored in a first information
management unit, in response to a user information receiving request;
a second unit causing the second information provider to receive a second user information item, correlated with the first
user information item and stored in a second information management unit, in response to a predetermined identification data;
and
a third unit configured to generate an authentication merge ticket including data indicating at least one of an authentication
provider name, a term of validity of the ticket, an authentication domain name, and user attributes, the authentication merge
ticket being a unified information item generated by combining the first user information item and the second user information
item based on the predetermined identification data; and
an interface configured to transmit the authentication merge ticket to a computer remote from the information providing device
via a network.
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