JP2007147923A - Image forming apparatus and image forming method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus where a cooling device surely cools a processor with minimum operation by discriminating processing which substantially requires cooling out of processing in the processor and operating the cooling device according to the result of discrimination, and a method therefor. <P>SOLUTION: The image forming apparatus 1 having a cooling fan 17 for cooling the processor 16 for forming image data by image processing in heat generation by the processor 16 is equipped with a job discrimination part 208 discriminating whether or not a job performed by the processor 16 is a printing job, and a cooling operation control part 210 operating the cooling fan 17 when it is discriminated as the printing job by the job discrimination part 208. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus and an image forming method that include a processor that forms image data by performing image processing such as memory editing and image editing, and has a cooling device that cools heat generated by the processor.

  In the image forming apparatus, when the editing process is multiplexed, the temperature of the substrate (IC) rises. Conventionally, in order to avoid this rise, a temperature sensor is used to constantly monitor the temperature of the substrate, etc., or a means for controlling the cooling fan, or a part where the temperature easily rises by constantly operating the cooling fan. There is an image forming apparatus having means for applying cooling air. In such a configuration, a temperature sensor is attached for cooling fan control, and the CPU must always monitor the temperature sensor. In addition, there were problems such as an increase in the cost of the airframe due to the attachment of the temperature sensor and the power supply capacity. Also, in the configuration in which the cooling fan is turned on from the beginning, the cooling fan is always on, so there is no temperature rise as in the case where image processing is not performed, and the cooling fan is turned on. Even when it is not necessary, the cooling fan is turned on, which causes problems such as power supply capacity and noise.

  In view of this, an image forming apparatus disclosed in the following Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-222842) has been proposed as a conventional technique for improving these problems. The image forming apparatus includes a processing unit that performs various processes such as memory editing and image editing, a cooling unit that cools the temperature rise of the processing unit, and various processes performed by the processing unit. Counting means for counting the multiplex state, comparing means for comparing the count value of the counting means with a predetermined condition value, and means for controlling on / off of the cooling means in accordance with the comparison result of the comparing means It is comprised and is comprised.

  Specifically, a cooling fan as a cooling unit is provided in the vicinity of a substrate (IC or the like) in which a control circuit for performing memory editing, image editing, and the like provided in the image forming apparatus is incorporated. When an interrupt from the image editing unit, compression / expansion unit, enlargement / reduction rotation unit, etc. occurs in the memory editing unit, which is a processing means, the memory management control unit turns on the interrupt bit for the interrupt from the interrupt control unit. Judgment is made and the count of the multiplexing state counter which is the counting means built in the CPU control unit is counted up. The CPU control unit that is a comparison unit compares the multiplexing count value of the multiplexing state counter with a predetermined condition value, and the fan on / off information control unit that is the on / off unit uses this comparison result as a cooling fan. Turn on / off.

  As described above, the image forming apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 can reduce the burden on the CPU without the need for a temperature sensor, and does not rotate the cooling fan more than necessary. Can be reduced.

JP-A-9-222842 (paragraphs [0002] to [0004], [0007], [0030] to [0033])

  However, the prior art disclosed in Patent Document 1 turns on / off the cooling fan depending on the processing contents in the processing means, so that even when the processing is completed in a short time, the cooling fan is operated each time. . Therefore, the above-described prior art performs cooling even in a short time process that does not need to be substantially cooled, so that it is not possible to sufficiently reduce noise, power supply capacity, and the like. Further, the above prior art has a problem that the number of switching operations of the cooling fan and its switch circuit is increased, so that the deterioration of the cooling fan, the switch circuit and the like is accelerated.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and includes a cooling fan or the like when determining the processing state of the processor and executing a process or job that substantially requires cooling. It is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus and method for reliably cooling a processor by operating a cooling device that is in operation and operating the cooling device for a minimum necessary period.

In order to solve the above problems, an invention according to claim 1 of the present application is an image forming apparatus including a processor that performs various processes including image processing, and a cooling unit that cools the processor.
Job discrimination means for discriminating the type of job executed by the image forming apparatus;
Cooling operation control means for operating the cooling means when the job determining means determines that the job is a job that applies a load greater than or equal to a predetermined load to the processor;
It is characterized by having.

The invention according to claim 2 of the present application relates to claim 1, wherein the job determination unit determines whether the job is a print job,
The cooling operation control means operates the cooling means when the job is a print job.

The invention according to claim 3 of the present application is related to the invention of claim 2, and the image forming apparatus includes:
A process determining means for determining a process in the processor;
When the job determination unit determines that the job is a print job,
The process determining means determines whether the process requires image processing in the processor,
The cooling operation control means operates the cooling means when the processing requires image processing.

The invention according to claim 4 of the present application is an image forming method in which image processing is performed by a processor cooled by a cooling means to form image data.
A job determination step of determining whether a job to be executed using the processor is a print job;
A cooling operation control step of operating the cooling means when it is determined as a print job in the job determination step;
It is characterized by having.

The invention according to claim 5 of the present application is an image forming method in which image processing is performed by a processor cooled by a cooling unit to form image data.
A job determination step of determining whether a job to be executed using the processor is a print job;
A process determining step of determining whether or not further image processing of image data to be image-formed in the job is necessary when determined as a print job in the job determining step;
A cooling operation control step of operating the cooling means when it is determined that image processing is necessary in the processing determination step;
It is characterized by having.

  In the image forming apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, the job determination unit determines a job that imposes a large burden on the processor and a job that does not impose a large burden such as a job that merely transfers various data. . Then, only when executing a job that applies a large load to the processor, the cooling operation control means operates the cooling device to forcibly cool the processor. Therefore, according to the present invention, the processor is forcedly cooled only when there is a possibility that the temperature is greatly increased by a specific job, and the number of operations of the cooling device and the cooling operation control means is minimized. Thus, it is possible to provide an image forming apparatus that prevents deterioration of the apparatuses. In addition, the image forming apparatus of the present invention has an effect that the object of the present invention can be reliably achieved with a simple configuration in which job discrimination means is added to the conventional image forming apparatus. In addition, the image forming apparatus according to the present invention described above can minimize power consumption. In addition, when the cooling mechanism is a cooling fan, it is possible to minimize the generation of noise.

  In the image forming apparatus according to the second aspect of the present invention, the processor can be cooled by operating the cooling device only when the job executed in the image forming apparatus is a print processing job that imposes a heavy burden on the processor. Thus, similarly to the effect of the invention according to claim 1, the processor can be forcibly cooled only when the temperature is likely to rise greatly. It is possible to minimize the number of operations and prevent deterioration of those devices.

In the image forming apparatus according to claim 3 of the present application, the job determination unit determines a print job that imposes a large burden on the processor and a job that does not impose a large burden such as transferring various data. . Even for a print job that imposes a heavy load on the processor, whether or not image processing to be processed by the processor has already been performed is determined by the processing determination unit, and the print job is processed by the processor. If so, the cooling device is operated by the cooling operation control means. Therefore, according to the present invention, the processor executes the print job and forcibly cools only when the image processing is performed and a large load is applied due to a large load. Therefore, the cooling device and the cooling operation control means operate only when the temperature rise is significant, and the number of times of the operation can be minimized, and the deterioration of the cooling device and the cooling operation control means can be prevented. An image forming apparatus can be provided. Moreover, the image forming apparatus of the present invention has an effect that the object of the present invention can be achieved with a simple configuration in which the job determining unit and the processing determining unit are added to the conventional image forming apparatus.
In the image forming apparatus according to the third aspect of the present invention, power consumption can be minimized. In addition, when the cooling device is a cooling fan, it is possible to minimize the generation of noise.

In the invention according to claim 4 of the present application, the job discrimination step discriminates between a print job that imposes a large burden on the processor and a job that does not impose a large burden such as transferring various data. When the print job is determined, the cooling device is operated in the cooling operation control process to forcibly cool the processor. Therefore, according to the invention of the present application, the cooling is forcibly performed only when there is a possibility that the processor may greatly increase the temperature due to the print job. An image forming method can be provided. In addition, the image forming method of the present invention has an effect that the object of the present invention can be reliably achieved by a simple method in which the job discrimination step is added to the conventional image forming method.
In the image forming method according to the fourth aspect, the power consumption can be minimized. In addition, when the cooling device is a cooling fan, it is possible to minimize the generation of noise.

In the invention according to claim 5 of the present application, the job discrimination step discriminates between a print job that imposes a large burden on the processor and a job that does not impose a large burden such as only transferring various data. Whether or not the image processing to be processed by the processor has already been performed even if it is a print job is determined by the processing determination step, and if the print job is data to be processed by the processor The cooling device is operated in a cooling operation control process. Therefore, according to the invention of the present application, the processor executes the print job, and performs image processing, and is forcibly cooled only when the temperature rises significantly due to a large load. Accordingly, since the cooling device operates only when the temperature rises remarkably and minimizes the number of operations, it is possible to provide an image forming method that prevents deterioration of the cooling device. Moreover, the image forming method of the present invention has the effect of reliably achieving the object of the present invention with a simple configuration in which the job determining step and the process determining step are added to the conventional image forming method.
In the image forming method of the present invention according to the fifth aspect, power consumption can be minimized, and noise generation can be minimized when the cooling mechanism is a cooling fan. It has the effect of.

  Hereinafter, specific examples of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to examples and drawings.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is.

  1, an image forming apparatus 1 as an apparatus to which the present invention is applied includes an automatic document feeder 10 provided at the top, a scanner 11, a printer 12, and a paper feed cassette 13 provided on the right side of the printer 12. A paper discharge tray 14 provided on the left side of the printer 12, a printed circuit board 15, a processor 16 disposed on the printed circuit board 15 for performing various data processing and printer control described later, and the processor 16 is cooled. And a cooling fan 17 that constitutes a cooling device for this purpose.

  The printer 12 includes a photosensitive drum 121 that is exposed by an output beam of a semiconductor laser, a conveying belt 122 that conveys a sheet that is fed from the sheet feeding cassette 13 and onto which a developed image is transferred, and downstream of the conveying belt 122. A fixing unit 123 that fixes the developed image on the sheet on which the image is transferred, a discharge roller 124 that discharges the sheet from the fixing unit 123 to the discharge tray 14, and a sheet sent from the fixing unit 123. In order to print on the back surface of the paper, the paper is reversed and conveyed to the photosensitive drum 121 again.

  A circuit configuration of the image forming apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIG. The image forming apparatus 1 includes an operation unit 201 including an operation screen and an operation panel, a scanner unit 202 that optically reads an image of a document and outputs read data, and read data of the scanner unit 202 for printing. An image processing unit 203 that performs image processing as image data and edits the image data, such as reduction / enlargement and rotation, a printer unit 204 that prints these image data, and a main control unit 205 that performs overall control The storage unit 206 temporarily holds image data.

  Further, the image forming apparatus 1 has an interface 207 and is connected to the host computer 3 and the facsimile 4 via the network 2.

  Further, the image forming apparatus 1 includes a job determination unit 208 that determines whether or not the job is a print job, and data to be subjected to image processing in the image processing unit 203 when the job determination unit 208 determines that the job is a print job. A process determination unit 209 for determining whether the print job data is data to be subjected to image processing by the image processing unit 203 in the process determination unit 209 or the cooling fan 17 based on the determination output. And a cooling operation control unit 210 that operates.

  Specifically, the job determination unit 208 performs the following determination. When the main control unit 205 supplies image data to the printer unit 204 to execute printing, it is determined as a print job. On the other hand, when the main control unit 205 sends the image data from the interface 207 to the network 2 and transmits it to the host computer 3 and the facsimile 4, it is determined that the job does not involve printing.

  Specifically, the process determination unit 209 performs the following determination. If the acquired data has not been subjected to image processing so that it can be printed by the image processing unit 203, it is determined that the data has not been subjected to image processing. Further, when data that has already undergone image processing is acquired by the host computer 3, the facsimile 4, or the like, it is determined that the image processing unit 203 does not need to perform image processing. When it is determined that the data has not been subjected to image processing, the main control unit 205 performs image processing on the data in the image processing unit 203, and then supplies the data to the printer unit 204 to execute printing. On the other hand, if it is determined that the data has already undergone image processing, the main control unit 205 supplies the data to the printer unit 204 as it is and executes printing.

  The processor 16 is composed of a CPU that operates the image processing unit 203, the printer unit 204, and the main control unit 205, and is externally housed in a single package.

  The operation of the image forming apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention described above will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  First, the user operates the operation unit 201 to activate the main control unit 205 to start a desired job processing operation. As shown in step S1, the job determination unit 208 determines whether the job whose processing operation has been started is a print job. If it is determined that the job is a print job, the processing determination unit 209 determines whether the data supplied to the printer unit 204 has already undergone image processing, as shown in step S2 based on the determination output.

  If it is determined in step S1 that the job is not a print job, as shown in step S3, the cooling operation control unit 210 does not operate the cooling fan 17 and remains in an inoperative state. A case where the job is not a print job corresponds to, for example, data transfer such as performance management, billing management, and security management using SNMP (simple network management protocol) which is a management protocol in the network system. Since such data processing is completed in a short time, a large load is not applied to the processor 16. Therefore, the processor 16 is not significantly increased in temperature.

  If it is determined in step S2 that image processing has not yet been performed, the determination output is output from the processing determination unit 209. Next, as shown in step S4, the cooling operation control unit 210 turns on the cooling fan 17 based on the determination output, and operates the cooling fan 17. On the other hand, the main control unit 205 performs image processing of data in the image processing unit 203 and supplies the image data to the printer unit 204 to execute printing. In the execution of printing, in the printer 12, the image is exposed to the photosensitive drum 121, a toner image is formed thereon, the toner image is transferred to the sheet fed from the sheet feeding cassette 13, and is fixed by the fixing unit 123. This is achieved by discharging paper to the paper discharge tray 14.

  Thereafter, as shown in step S5, the main control unit 205 detects whether or not the print job is completed. When it is detected that the print job is finished, the cooling operation control unit 210 turns off the power switch of the cooling fan 17 and switches the cooling fan 17 to the non-operating state as shown in step S6 by the detection output. .

  In order to remove the remaining heat with certainty, the cooling fan 17 is set to be switched to a non-operating state after a predetermined time has elapsed after the end of the print job.

  If it is determined in step S2 that the print job data has undergone image processing, the main control unit 205 supplies the image data to the printer unit 204 in accordance with the determination output to execute printing. Then, as shown in step S <b> 3, the cooling operation control unit 210 remains in the inoperative state without operating the cooling fan 17. The case where the print job data has been subjected to the image processing is a case where the image is processed and sent by the host computer 3, the facsimile 4, or the like as described above. Since such data is supplied to the printer unit 204 and printed as it is, a large load is not applied to the processor 16. Therefore, the processor 16 does not cause a large temperature rise. Another example in which image processing has been performed is a case where image data image-processed in advance by the image processing unit 203 is stored in the storage unit 206, and the stored data is simply read out and printed.

  According to the image forming apparatus 1 of the embodiment of the present invention described above, when the user operates the operation unit 201 to start execution of a desired job, the job determination unit 208 determines whether the job is a print job. Is determined. By this determination, the cooling fan 17 is operated only when a print job estimated to give a large load to the processor 16 forming the image processing unit 203 is executed. In the case of executing a job that does not give a large load to the processor 16, the cooling fan 17 is not used unnecessarily. Further, even when the print job is determined, the processing determination unit 209 determines whether the data has already undergone image processing. If the print job has image processed data, the cooling fan The cooling fan 17 is operated only when the data to be image-processed is acquired without operating the 17. By these two determinations, the cooling fan 17 can be operated only when executing a job that causes a substantial load on the processor 16 and a large temperature rise.

  Accordingly, since the cooling fan 17 operates to cool the processor 16 only when a job to be substantially cooled is executed, not only power consumption can be minimized, but also noise generation can be minimized. Can be suppressed. Further, by minimizing the number of operations of the cooling fan 17 and the cooling operation control unit 210, deterioration of the cooling device can be prevented.

  In the embodiment of the present invention, the cooling fan 17 is used as the cooling device. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and may be a cooling device composed of a semiconductor element having a Peltier effect, for example. Etc. can be used.

  In the embodiment of the present invention, the network 2 is used as the transmission means. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the image forming apparatus 1, the host computer 3, and the facsimile are connected using short-range wireless communication. You may make it transmit data with 4 grade | etc.,.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing an image forming apparatus in an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the image forming apparatus in the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the image forming apparatus in the embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image forming apparatus 2 Network 3 Host computer 4 Facsimile 10 Automatic document feeder 11 Scanner 12 Printer 13 Paper feed cassette 14 Paper discharge tray 15 Printed circuit board 16 Processor 17 Cooling fan 121 Photosensitive drum 122 Conveying belt 123 Fixing part 124 For paper discharge Roller 125 Reverse conveyance path 201 Operation unit 202 Scanner unit 203 Image processing unit 204 Printer unit 205 Main control unit 206 Storage unit 207 Interface 208 Job determination unit 209 Processing determination unit 210 Cooling operation control unit

Claims (5)

In an image forming apparatus having a processor for performing various processes including image processing, and a cooling means for cooling the processor,
Job discrimination means for discriminating the type of job executed by the image forming apparatus;
Cooling operation control means for operating the cooling means when the job determining means determines that the job is a job that applies a load greater than or equal to a predetermined load to the processor;
An image forming apparatus comprising: The job determining means determines whether the job is a print job;
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cooling operation control unit operates the cooling unit when the job is a print job. The image forming apparatus includes:
A process determining means for determining a process in the processor;
When the job determination unit determines that the job is a print job,
The process determining means determines whether the process requires image processing in the processor;
The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the cooling operation control unit operates the cooling unit when the processing requires image processing. In an image forming method of forming image data by performing image processing with a processor cooled by a cooling means,
A job determination step of determining whether a job to be executed using the processor is a print job;
A cooling operation control step of operating the cooling means when it is determined as a print job in the job determination step;
An image forming method characterized by comprising: In an image forming method of forming image data by performing image processing with a processor cooled by a cooling means,
A job determination step of determining whether a job to be executed using the processor is a print job;
A process determining step of determining whether or not further image processing of image data to be image-formed in the job is necessary when determined as a print job in the job determining step;
A cooling operation control step of operating the cooling means when it is determined that image processing is necessary in the processing determination step;
An image forming method characterized by comprising:

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