JP2015167312A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming device capable of performing optimum power management even when a device is in an abnormal state.SOLUTION: An image forming device 1 comprises input means 2 for inputting image data, output means 4 for outputting the image data input by the input means, control means 3 for controlling input-output data, and operation means 8 for setting input-output. The control means 3 comprises power control means, abnormal state detecting means, and specific power-off means. The power control means individually controls the power supplies of the input means 2 and the output means 4. The abnormal state detecting means detects an abnormal state of the input means 2 or the output means 4. The specific power-off means turns off the power supplies of devices other than the device in which an error is detected, using the power control means at transition to standby when error detecting means detects the error.

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus.

  Along with the heightened awareness of energy saving, image forming apparatuses are also equipped with functions that operate with low power. In particular, for the purpose of reducing power consumption during standby, a function of turning off the power of devices that are not operating, such as a printer or a scanner, is realized in a standby state in which an operation from a user is awaited. Conventionally, emphasizing responsiveness to user operations, the device is turned on even in a standby state other than during operation. When a user inputs a job for operating a printer and a scanner to the image forming apparatus, a necessary device is determined and turned on to reduce power consumption during standby.

  In a configuration in which power is turned on when a user operation is accepted and a device necessary for the operation is determined, power supply to the device is stopped in a standby state where there is no user operation for a certain period of time and the job is waiting.

  On the other hand, when an abnormal state of the device is detected, the controller is notified and displayed on the operation unit to notify the user of the abnormality. When the abnormal state is resolved, a status change notification is sent from the device to the controller. When the controller detects the status change, the controller changes the display on the operation unit, and the user can determine the return from the device abnormal state. When the power supply to the device is stopped in the standby state and the abnormal state is resolved, the device cannot send a status change notification to the controller, and the display on the operation unit cannot be changed. Therefore, the user cannot know the return from the abnormal state.

  A technique is disclosed in which the device is not shifted to a low power state when the device is in an abnormal state (see Patent Document 1).

JP 2002-300369 A

  In the case of Patent Document 1, since the entire apparatus does not shift to a low power state, there is a problem that wasteful power is consumed.

The configuration of the present invention is as follows:
An input unit (2) for inputting image data, an output unit (4) for outputting image data input by the input unit, a control unit (3) for controlling input / output data, and input / output settings. An image forming apparatus having an operation means (8).
The control means (3) is a power supply control means for individually controlling the power supply of the input means (2) and the output means (4);
The control means (3) detects an abnormal state of either the input means (2) or the output means (4);
When the error detection means detects an error, using the power supply control means at the time of transition to standby, a specific power cut-off means for turning off the power of devices other than the device,
It is characterized by having.

  According to the present invention, optimal power management can be performed even when a device is in an abnormal state.

It is a figure which shows the block diagram of the controller of this invention. It is the figure which showed the flowchart of this invention. It is the figure which showed the flowchart of this invention. It is the figure which showed the display of the operation part of this invention.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, the constituent elements described in this embodiment are merely examples, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention.

  An image forming apparatus as an embodiment of an information processing apparatus according to the present invention will be described.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram of this system.

  The image forming apparatus (1) includes the following.

  A scanner device (2) for optically reading an image from a document and converting it to a digital image, a printer device (4) for outputting the digital image to a paper device, an operation unit (8) for operating the device, A hard disk device (14) for storing a control program and the like.

  Also, a FAX apparatus (7) that transmits a digital image to a telephone line and the like, and a controller (3) that is connected to the FAX apparatus (7) and can execute a job on the image forming apparatus by giving an instruction to each module.

  The image forming apparatus (1) can also input / output digital images, issue jobs, and instruct devices from the computer (10) via the LAN (7).

  The scanner device (2) includes a document feeding unit (11) capable of automatically sequentially replacing a bundle of documents and a scanner unit (12) capable of optically scanning a document and converting it into a digital image. The image data is transmitted to the controller (3).

  The printer device (4) is capable of sequentially feeding one sheet at a time from a bundle of paper, a marking unit (16) for printing image data on the fed paper, and discharging the printed paper. A paper discharge unit (17).

  The controller (3) has a CPU (13) and transmits / receives and stores image data with the scanner device (2) and the printer device (4).

  That is, the controller (3) temporarily stores the image data received from the scanner device (2) in the memory (15).

  Thereafter, the image data is stored in the hard disk device (14) to complete scanning and saving of the image.

  The controller (3) can temporarily output the image data from the hard disk device (14) in the memory (15), and perform print output by transmitting the image data from the memory (15) to the printer device (4).

  In addition, the image data having the general-purpose image processing unit (19) is stored in the memory (15) again after the image data stored in the memory (15) is subjected to processing such as reduction by the general-purpose image processing unit (19). It has an image processing unit (5) that can.

  The general-purpose image processing unit (19) is used in various scenes as necessary. The image forming apparatus (1) has an operation unit (8) controlled by the controller (3). The CPU (13) interprets an operator operation or an instruction from the LAN (9) and can execute various jobs. It is.

An example is described below.
Copy function The image read from the scanner device (2) is stored in the hard disk device (14), and simultaneously printed using the printer device (4).
Image transmission function The image read from the scanner device (2) is stored in the hard disk device (14) and transmitted to the computer (10) via the LAN (9).
Image storage function The image read from the scanner device (2) is stored in the hard disk device (14), and image transmission and image printing are performed as necessary.
Image print function Analyzes, for example, a page description language transmitted from the computer (10), and prints it with the printer (4).
-FAX reception printing The FAX image received from the FAX apparatus (7) is stored in the hard disk apparatus (14), and at the same time, printing is performed using the printer apparatus (4).
Fax transfer processing The fax image received from the fax machine (7) is stored in the hard disk drive (14), and is simultaneously transferred to the computer (10) via the LAN (9).
Fax memory reception processing The FAX image received from the FAX apparatus (7) is stored in the hard disk apparatus (14), and the reference from the operator is awaited.
Fax transmission processing The image read from the scanner device (2) is stored in the hard disk device (14), and simultaneously transmitted from the FAX device (7) to the public line.

  In many cases, the hard disk device 14 is interposed in order to recover from an abnormal state such as a job failure or a power failure.

  The power supply device (6) is a device that supplies power to the image forming apparatus (1).

  When the device is OFF, the AC power source (29) is insulated by the switch (30).

  When the switch (12) is turned on, AC power is supplied to the AC-DC converter 20 to create DC power.

  This device is capable of four independent power supply controls for the entire device according to instructions from the CPU (13).

  In other words, the power of the controller unit power (25) can be controlled OFF / ON by the switch (21) from the CPU (13).

  Similarly, the switch (22) can control the printer unit power (28), the switch (23) can control the power of the scanner unit power (26), and the switch (24) can control the general-purpose image processing unit power (27). .

  The CPU (13) uses these switches (21) to (24) to appropriately supply power to a necessary place of the image forming apparatus (1).

Each power state is described below.
Sleep mode This mode is a state in which the power of the image forming apparatus (1) itself is reduced as much as possible. The peripheral device of the CPU (13) is in a general suspended state (ACPI-S3, etc.), and only the part that can detect a job (sleep power (31)) is energized, and the power of the entire apparatus is very low. Can be in a state. Specifically, the CPU (13) stores the state of the apparatus in the memory (15), and the controller (25) including itself is turned off by the switch (21). At this time, the CPU (13) itself does not operate, but the sleep power (31) is turned on in hardware, and only a job can be recognized. For example, when the network reception from the LAN (9), the FAX call from the FAX apparatus (7), or the operation unit (8) is operated, the controller unit power (25) is turned on by hardware. The CPU (13) reads the state of the device stored in the memory (15) from the memory (15), performs resetting, and returns to the state immediately before the power of the controller unit power (25) is turned off. Transition to standby state. Since the sleep state is a state in which most of the hardware cannot operate, it has only a function for making a transition to the standby state. The job is accepted after shifting to the standby state.
The standby state controller unit power (25) is energized. An operation by an operator from the operation unit (8), a job via a network from the LAN (9), and the like are received. Since the printer unit power (28), the scanner unit power (26), and the general-purpose image processing unit power (27) are OFF, the CPU (13) switches the power source of the device used by the switches (22) to (24). After energizing, a predetermined job is executed. For example, the power of each device is turned on according to the job type as follows.
Copy function The scanner unit power (26) and the printer unit power (28) are turned on to realize the copy function as described above.
Image transmission function Turns on only the scanner unit power (26) and transmits the read image data.
Image saving function Turns on only the scanner unit power (26) and saves the read image data.
Image print function Turns on only the printer unit power (28) and prints various image data.
-Fax reception print printer unit power (28) and general-purpose image processing unit power (27) are turned on, and the received FAX image is printed after performing general-purpose image processing.
Fax transfer processing Only the general-purpose image processing unit power (27) is turned on, and the data received by FAX is transferred after general-purpose image processing.
FAX memory reception processing Only the general-purpose image processing unit power (27) is turned on, and the data received by FAX is subjected to general-purpose image processing and then stored in the hard disk device (14).
Fax transmission processing The scanner unit power (26) and the general-purpose image processing unit power (27) are turned on, and the read fax image data is transmitted to the public line. When the job is completed, by turning off the power of the device, only the necessary device can be energized only when it is used, and the standby power during standby can be reduced.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart of the present invention. The contents of specific processing of the present invention will be described with reference to this drawing.

  In step 201, the CPU (13) shifts the controller (3) to the standby state. Processing performed when the controller shifts to standby in the following steps is shown.

  In step 202, the CPU (13) communicates with the printer apparatus (4) to acquire the status status of the printer apparatus (4). The CPU (13) determines whether the printer apparatus (4) is in a normal state. If the printer device (4) is in a normal state, the process proceeds to step 203. The printer abnormal state includes a paper out of paper to be fed and a jammed state where paper remains in the path.

  In step 203, the CPU (13) communicates with the printer apparatus (4), controls the switch (22), and turns off the power supply (28) of the printer apparatus (4).

  In step 204, the CPU (13) communicates with the scanner device (2) to acquire the status status of the scanner device (2). The CPU (13) determines whether or not the scanner device (2) is in a normal state. The abnormal state of the scanner includes a jam state where paper remains on the path.

  In step 205, the CPU (13) communicates with the scanner device (2), controls the switch (23), and turns off the power supply (26) of the scanner device (2).

  In steps 202 and 204, the power sources of the printer device (4) and the scanner device (2) are independently controlled in accordance with the respective states. Further, the power supply of the image processing unit (5) can be turned off in the standby state.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart of the present invention. The contents of specific processing of the present invention will be described with reference to this drawing.

  In step 301, the CPU (13) shifts the controller (3) to the standby state. Processing performed when the controller shifts to standby in the following steps is shown.

  In step 302, the CPU (13) communicates with the printer apparatus (4) to acquire the status status of the printer apparatus (4). The CPU (13) determines whether the printer device (4) is in a normal state. If the printer device (4) is in a normal state, the process proceeds to step 304; The printer abnormal state includes a paper out of paper to be fed and a jammed state where paper remains in the path.

  In step 303, communication is performed with the printer apparatus (4) to determine whether the abnormal state of the printer apparatus (4) can be recovered. If the return is possible, the process proceeds to step 305. If the return is impossible, the process proceeds to step 304. The state in which the printer device (4) can be recovered from the abnormal state indicates a state in which the printer device (4) can be recovered by a user operation such as out of paper to be fed or out of toner. The state in which the printer (4) is not recoverable is a state in which some recovery work is required by turning off the power source such as a component failure. In general, an error code is displayed on the operation unit (8), and it is necessary to deal with a service person having specialized knowledge.

  In step 304, communication is performed with the printer apparatus (4), the switch (22) is controlled, and the power supply (28) of the printer apparatus (4) is turned off.

  In step 305, communication is performed with the scanner device (2), and the status status of the scanner device (2) is acquired. The CPU (13) determines whether the scanner device (2) is in a normal state. If the scanner device (2) is in a normal state, the process proceeds to step 307, and if it is in an abnormal state, the process proceeds to step 306. The abnormal state of the scanner includes a jam state where paper remains on the path.

  In step 306, communication is performed with the scanner device (2) to determine whether the abnormal state of the scanner device (2) can be recovered. If the return is possible, the process ends. If the return is impossible, the process proceeds to step 307. The state in which the scanner device (2) can be recovered from the abnormal state is a paper jam, forgetting to remove a document, or the like, and indicates a state that can be recovered by a user operation. The state in which the scanner (2) cannot be restored is a state in which some recovery work is required by turning off the power source such as a component failure. In general, an error code is displayed on the operation unit (8), and it is necessary to deal with a service person having specialized knowledge.

  In step 307, the CPU (13) communicates with the scanner device (2), controls the switch (23), and turns off the power source (26) of the scanner device (2).

  When the printer device (4) and the scanner device (2) are in an abnormal state in steps 303 and 306 and the abnormality can be restored by the user's operation, information necessary for restoration is displayed on the operation unit (8). The The user performs a recovery operation on the information. When the user recovers, the display of the operation unit (8) disappears, and the printer device (4) and the scanner device (2) are turned off.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an abnormal state displayed on the operation unit (8).

  Reference numeral 401 denotes a screen displayed when the CPU (13) determines in step 302 that the state is abnormal. The user looks at this screen and performs a return operation from the abnormal state. Reference numeral 402 denotes a screen immediately after returning from the abnormal state. When the machine recovers from the abnormal state, the running job is resumed. This example shows a screen when an abnormal state occurs during printing. Reference numeral 403 denotes a standby screen. When the job execution is completed and a predetermined time elapses, this screen is displayed, and the printer (4) and the scanner (2) are turned off.

  Reference numeral 404 denotes a screen displayed when it is determined in step 303 that the abnormal state cannot be recovered. Abnormal content is displayed, and it is necessary to deal with service personnel with specialized knowledge.

2: Scanner device 4: Printer device 8: Operation unit 14: Hard disk device

Claims (2)

An input unit (2) for inputting image data, an output unit (4) for outputting image data input by the input unit, a control unit (3) for controlling input / output data, and input / output settings. An image forming apparatus having an operation means (8).
The control means (3) is a power supply control means for individually controlling the power supply of the input means (2) and the output means (4);
The control means (3) detects an abnormal state of either the input means (2) or the output means (4);
When the error detection means detects an error, using the power supply control means at the time of transition to standby, a specific power cut-off means for turning off the power of devices other than the device,
An image forming apparatus comprising: The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the abnormality detected by the abnormal state detection unit is an irrecoverable abnormality, the power of the abnormal device is turned off using the power control unit.