Image forming apparatus and image forming method for inferring and responding to target operator situation

An image forming method that is executed by an image forming apparatus comprising the steps of:

• in the image forming apparatus,
• performing recognition of surroundings of the image forming apparatus itself from captured image data, thereby recognizing recognition information from the captured image data;
• collecting additional information that possibly is associated with a target operator
• inferring a situation of the image forming apparatus itself by correlating the recognized recognition information with the additional information;
• and
• performing a change of a response and/or an operation corresponding to the inferred situation, wherein
• the recognition information comprises
• recognition that a person around the image forming apparatus itself is the target operator;
• and
• recognition of operation-related information related to user operation by the target operator;
• the addition information comprises any one or any combination of apparatus operation history and option mounting state information as the additional information;
• and
• the inferred situation is an inference of an image forming apparatus operation that the target operator will want to perform next.

A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium including instructions that are executed by an image forming apparatus, the instructions including the steps of:

• in the image forming apparatus,
• performing recognition of surroundings of the image forming apparatus itself from captured image data, thereby recognizing recognition information from the captured image data;
• collecting additional information that possibly is associated with a target operator;
• inferring a situation of the image forming apparatus itself by correlating the recognized recognition information with the additional information;
• and
• performing a change of a response and/or an operation corresponding to the inferred situation, wherein
• the recognition information comprises
• recognition that a person around the image forming apparatus itself is the target operator;
• and
• recognition of operation-related information related to user operation by the target operator;
• the addition information comprises any one or any combination of apparatus operation history and option mounting state information as the additional information;
• and
• the inferred situation is an inference of an image forming apparatus operation that the target operator will want to perform next.