JP2008129096A - Image processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image processing device capable of backing up the information to be written to a nonvolatile memory even when shutting down power. <P>SOLUTION: The image processing device 1 comprises: a main power supply 3 for supplying electric power to the whole device to drive the image processing device 1; a standby power supply 4 for supplying electric power to a part of the image processing device 1; a control means (a control part 2) for controlling the image processing device 1; a nonvolatile memory (represented by EEPROM 2e) for storing device information used by the image processing device 1 including the setting information; and a volatile memory (represented by memory 2f) capable of retaining the storage state by the supply of electric power. When the information constituting a part or all of the device information cannot be written to the EEPROM 2e, the control part 2 not only writes the information to the memory 2f, but also provides the standby power supply 4 to the memory 2f. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, and more particularly, to an image processing apparatus that writes device information such as setting information in a nonvolatile memory when shifting to a power saving mode or when power is turned off.

  An image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a multifunction machine uses a heat fixing device to fix toner on a recording paper, and consumes a large amount of power. Therefore, conventionally, when the apparatus is not used for a predetermined time, control is performed to suppress power consumption by shifting to a low power consumption (power saving) mode or by stopping the apparatus. Such control is performed not only in the image forming apparatus but also in other image processing apparatuses such as a scanner apparatus and a PC.

  In this way, when changing the state of the device from the normal operation state, such as the power saving mode or power-off (transition to power off), the device setting state such as the device operation mode or user setting value, counter information, etc. Such information as maintenance management data is stored in a nonvolatile memory (for example, EEPROM) in the apparatus. As a result, when the device again enters the operating state, the information stored in the nonvolatile memory can be read and the state set in the device can be maintained.

Patent Document 1 discloses a printing apparatus that takes a backup and does not cause trouble in the printing process when the nonvolatile memory fails during the printing process or after the power is turned on.
JP 2003-335003 A

  As described above, in the image processing apparatus, the state of the apparatus is written into the backup non-volatile memory when the power source shifts to the power saving mode or the power off state. However, when writing to the non-volatile memory, the power supplied to the non-volatile memory may become unstable or noise may be applied to the power supply. For example, when the main power supply is interrupted due to a power failure or the like when shifting to the power saving mode or when turning off the power, the supplied power becomes unstable or noise occurs in the power. If power supply instability or noise occurs during writing to the nonvolatile memory, the nonvolatile memory may be damaged or malfunctioned.

  In such a situation, the breakage or failure of the nonvolatile memory cannot be avoided by the technique described in Patent Document 1 that cannot cope with the power-off, and is the same in other conventional techniques. In addition, when such a situation occurs, in the prior art including Patent Document 1, an event that the nonvolatile memory is damaged or failed cannot be recorded in another memory. There is a problem that failure cannot be detected and abnormal operation is caused.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an image processing apparatus capable of backing up information to be written to the nonvolatile memory even when the power is turned off. .

  In order to solve the above-described problem, a first technical means of the present invention includes an image processing apparatus that performs image processing, a main power supply for supplying power to the entire apparatus in order to operate the image processing apparatus, A standby power source for supplying power to a part of the image processing apparatus, a control means for controlling the image processing apparatus, and a nonvolatile memory for storing apparatus information used in the image processing apparatus including setting information A memory and a volatile memory capable of holding a storage state by power supply, and the control means writes all or part of the device information into the nonvolatile memory when it cannot be written, The information is written in the volatile memory and the standby power is supplied to the volatile memory.

  According to a second technical means, in the first technical means, the control means adds the information indicating that the nonvolatile memory is abnormal when writing the information to the volatile memory. It is a feature.

  A third technical means is characterized in that, in the first or second technical means, the control means executes writing to the non-volatile memory when the state of the main power supply shifts to power supply not supplied. It is a thing.

  According to a fourth technical means, in the third technical means, the control means determines an energization state from the standby power supply when the main power is newly supplied, and The information is read from the volatile memory instead of the non-volatile memory.

  A fifth technical means includes a notification means for notifying abnormality of the image processing apparatus in the fourth technical means, and the control means reads information read from the volatile memory after the new supply is made. When the operation of the image processing apparatus is executed based on the above, the notification unit is notified of an abnormality of the nonvolatile memory.

  According to a sixth technical means, in any one of the third to fifth technical means, when the main power is newly supplied, the control means determines an energization state from the standby power supply. The supply from the standby power supply is stopped.

  A seventh technical means includes any one of the first to sixth technical means, including a portion that does not supply power by the main power source but supplies power by the sub power source, and uses the sub power source as the standby power source. It is a feature.

  According to the image processing apparatus of the present invention, it is possible to back up information to be written to the nonvolatile memory even when the power is turned off.

  An image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes an auxiliary power supply for supplying power to a part of the apparatus in addition to a main power supply for supplying power to the entire apparatus in order to operate the apparatus, and processes an image. Device. As the image processing apparatus according to the present invention, for example, various image forming apparatuses such as a multifunction machine having various functions such as a printing function, a copying function, and a facsimile function, a copying machine, and a facsimile machine are applicable. An information processing device such as a PC corresponds to the device of the present invention because it handles image data, and a device such as a measuring device that processes an image as a simple display of character data also corresponds to the device of the present invention. First, a configuration example of a general image forming apparatus as an image processing apparatus according to the present invention will be described, and then main features of the present invention will be described.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an internal configuration example of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes an image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus 1 forms a multicolor (full color) image or a single color (monochrome) image on a predetermined sheet (recording paper) in accordance with image data transmitted from the outside (for example, a terminal device such as a PC). Is. As illustrated, the image forming apparatus 1 includes an exposure unit 31, a developing device 32 (32a to 32d), a photosensitive drum 33 (33a to 33d) as an image carrier, a charger 35 (35a to 35d), A cleaner unit 34 (34a to 34d), an intermediate transfer belt unit 40, a fixing device 60, a paper transport path S, a paper feed cassette 51a, a manual feed tray 51b, a paper discharge tray 70, and the like are provided.

  The image data handled in the image forming apparatus 1 corresponds to a color image using each color of black (K), cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y). Accordingly, the developing device 32 (32a to 32d), the photosensitive drum 33 (33a to 33d), the charger 35 (35a to 35d), and the cleaner unit 34 (34a to 34d) generate four types of latent images corresponding to the respective colors. In FIG. 1, a is set to black, b is set to cyan, c is set to magenta, and d is set to yellow to form four image stations (image forming units). ing.

  The photosensitive drum 33 is disposed (mounted) on the upper part of the image forming apparatus 1 so that an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the image data is formed by laser light irradiation from the exposure unit 31 as described later. . Although not shown, the photosensitive drum 33 is an element tube formed by applying a photosensitive layer on the surface of a cylindrical aluminum alloy, and a resin driving side flange press-fitted into one end of the element tube. A rear flange, a front flange as a plastic non-driving side flange that is press-fitted into the other end of the raw pipe, and a shaft that is rotatably connected to the rear flange and the front flange, respectively, and is supported through the center of the raw pipe And a shaft. The front flange is rotatably supported on the front surface of the image forming apparatus 1 via a bearing (not shown).

  The charger 35 is a charging means for uniformly charging the surface (photoconductor layer) of the photosensitive drum 33 to a predetermined potential. As shown in FIG. 1, a contact-type roller-type or brush-type charger is used. In addition, a charger-type charger may be used.

  The exposure unit 31 includes a laser scanning unit (LSU) including a laser irradiation unit 31a, a lens 31b such as a cylindrical lens, and a plurality of reflection mirrors 31c. The laser irradiation part 31a irradiates the laser beam for each hue based on the received image data. In addition, there is a method using, for example, an EL or LED writing head in which light emitting elements are arranged in an array. The exposure unit 31 functions to form an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the image data on the surface of the photosensitive drum 33 by exposing the charged photosensitive drum 33 according to the input image data. have.

  The developing device 32 visualizes the electrostatic latent images formed on the respective photosensitive drums 33 with toners (developers) of respective colors (K, C, M, Y). The cleaner unit 34 removes and collects toner remaining on the surface of the photosensitive drum 33 after development and image transfer.

  The intermediate transfer belt unit 40 disposed above the photosensitive drum 33 includes an intermediate transfer belt 41, an intermediate transfer belt driving roller 42, an intermediate transfer belt driven roller 43, and an intermediate transfer roller 44 (44a to 44a) serving as a primary transfer roller. 44d), an intermediate transfer belt tension mechanism 45 and an intermediate transfer belt cleaning unit 46 are provided.

  The intermediate transfer belt drive roller 42, the intermediate transfer belt tension mechanism 45, the intermediate transfer roller 44, and the intermediate transfer belt driven roller 43 are stretched over the intermediate transfer belt 41, and the intermediate transfer belt 42 is rotated along with the rotation of the intermediate transfer belt drive roller 42. The belt 41 is made to travel in the arrow B direction.

  The intermediate transfer roller 44 is rotatably supported by a roller mounting portion in the intermediate transfer belt tension mechanism 45. As a result, the intermediate transfer rollers 44 a to 44 d are rotatably disposed on the inner surface side of the intermediate transfer belt 41 facing the respective photosensitive drums 33, and the toner images on the photosensitive drums 33 are arranged. Is transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 41.

  The intermediate transfer belt 41 is provided so as to be in contact with each photosensitive drum 33. Then, the toner images of the respective colors formed on the photosensitive drum 33 are sequentially superimposed and transferred onto the intermediate transfer belt 41, thereby forming a color toner image (multicolor toner composite image) on the intermediate transfer belt 41. It is like that. The intermediate transfer belt 41 is formed endlessly using a film having a thickness of about 100 μm to 150 μm.

  The transfer of the toner image from the photosensitive drum 33 to the intermediate transfer belt 41 is performed by an intermediate transfer roller 44 that is in contact with the back side (inner surface side) of the intermediate transfer belt 41. That is, a high voltage transfer bias (a high voltage having a polarity (+) opposite to the toner charging polarity (−)) is applied to the intermediate transfer roller 44 in order to transfer the toner image. The intermediate transfer roller 44 is a roller whose base is a metal (for example, stainless steel) shaft having a diameter of 8 to 10 mm and whose surface is covered with a conductive elastic material (for example, EPDM, urethane foam, or the like). By this conductive elastic material, a high voltage can be uniformly applied to the intermediate transfer belt 41. In this embodiment, a roller electrode is used as the transfer electrode, but a brush or the like can also be used.

  As described above, the toner images visualized in accordance with the respective hues on the respective photoreceptors 33a to 33d are stacked on the intermediate transfer belt 41 and become image information input to the apparatus. As described above, the laminated image information (composite image of multi-color toner) is transferred to the transfer roller that constitutes a transfer unit that is disposed at a contact position between the sheet and the intermediate transfer belt 41 described later as the intermediate transfer belt 41 travels. 47 is transferred onto the paper.

  At this time, the intermediate transfer belt 41 and the transfer roller 47 are pressed against each other at a predetermined nip, and a voltage for transferring the toner to the paper is applied to the transfer roller 47 (opposite to the toner charging polarity (−)). Polarity (+) high voltage). Further, in order to obtain the nip constantly, the transfer roller 47 uses either the transfer roller 47 or the intermediate transfer belt drive roller 42 as a hard material (metal, etc.) and the other as a soft material (elasticity, such as an elastic roller). Rubber roller or foaming resin roller).

  Further, as described above, the toner adhered to the intermediate transfer belt 41 due to contact with the photosensitive drum 33, or the toner remaining on the intermediate transfer belt 41 without being transferred onto the sheet by the transfer roller 47 is used in the next step. Therefore, the intermediate transfer belt cleaning unit 46 removes and collects the toner. The intermediate transfer belt cleaning unit 46 is provided with a cleaning blade as a cleaning member that comes into contact with the intermediate transfer belt 41, and the intermediate transfer belt driven roller from the back side with respect to the intermediate transfer belt 41 in contact with the cleaning blade. 43 is supported. Then, the residual toner collected by this cleaning blade falls and accumulates in a storage unit installed below the cleaning blade.

  The paper feed cassette 51 a is a cassette for storing sheets (recording paper) used for image formation, and is provided at the bottom of the image forming apparatus 1, that is, below the exposure unit 31. In addition, a paper discharge tray 70 provided on the upper part of the image forming apparatus 1 is a tray for placing printed sheets face down.

  Further, the image forming apparatus 1 is provided with a sheet conveyance path S for sending the sheets of the sheet feeding cassette 51 a to the sheet discharge tray 70 via the transfer roller 47 and the fixing device 60. The sheet transport path S extends in a substantially vertical direction from the sheet discharge portion of the sheet feed cassette 51a toward the sheet discharge tray 70. Further, a pickup roller 52a, a registration roller 36, a transfer roller 47, a fixing device 60, a conveyance roller 53 (53a to 53c) that conveys a sheet, and the like are provided in the sheet conveyance path S from the sheet feeding cassette 51a to the sheet discharge tray 70. It is arranged.

  The conveyance rollers 53 are small rollers for promoting and assisting conveyance of the sheet, and a plurality of conveyance rollers 53 are provided along the sheet conveyance path S. The pickup roller 52a is provided at the end of the paper feed cassette 51a, and is a drawing roller that feeds sheets one by one from the paper feed cassette 51a to the paper transport path S.

  The registration roller 36 temporarily holds the sheet being conveyed on the sheet conveyance path S. The sheet has a function of conveying the sheet to a transfer unit (a nip portion between the transfer roller 47 and the intermediate transfer belt driving roller 42) at the timing when the leading edge of the toner image on the intermediate transfer belt 41 is aligned with the leading edge of the sheet. Yes.

  The fixing device 60 includes a heat roller 61, a pressure roller 62, and the like. The heat roller 61 and the pressure roller 62 rotate with the sheet interposed therebetween. The heat roller 61 is set to have a predetermined fixing temperature by a control unit based on a signal from a temperature detector (not shown), and is transferred to the sheet by thermocompression bonding with the pressure roller 62. The resulting multicolor toner image is melted, mixed, and pressed to thermally fix the sheet. The sheet after the fixing of the multicolor toner image is transported on the paper transport path S by the transport roller 53, and is discharged onto the paper discharge tray 15 with the multicolor toner image facing downward.

  Next, the sheet conveyance path will be described in detail. The image forming apparatus 1 is provided with a paper feed cassette 51a that stores sheets in advance, and a manual feed tray 51b that does not need to open and close the paper feed cassette 51a when a user prints a small number of sheets. ing. In both paper feeding methods, pick-up rollers 52 (52a, 52b) are respectively arranged so as to guide one sheet to the conveyance path.

  The sheet conveyed from the sheet feeding cassette 51a is fed by the pickup roller 52a, conveyed to the registration roller 36 by the conveying roller 53a in the conveying path, and aligns the leading edge of the sheet with the leading edge of the image information on the intermediate transfer belt 41. Is conveyed to the transfer roller 47 at a timing to write image information on the sheet. Thereafter, the sheet passes through the fixing device 60, whereby unfixed toner on the sheet is melted and fixed by heat, and is discharged from the discharge roller 53c to the discharge tray 70 via the conveying roller 53b (one-side printing request is requested). Time).

  On the other hand, the sheets stacked on the manual feed tray 51b are fed by the pickup roller 52b, reach the registration roller 36 through a plurality of transport rollers 54 (54a to 54c), and thereafter are fed from the paper feed cassette 51a. The sheet is discharged to the sheet discharge tray 70 through the same process as the sheet to be printed (when single-sided printing is requested).

  At this time, if the print request content is a double-sided print request, the trailing edge of the sheet that has finished single-sided printing and has passed through the fixing device 60 as described above is chucked by the paper discharge roller 53c, and the paper discharge roller 53c rotates in the reverse direction. As a result, after being guided to the switchback conveyance path SS provided with the conveyance rollers 55 (55a, 55b), the back side printing is performed through the registration rollers 36, and then discharged to the paper discharge tray 70. .

  In the actual image forming operation, the intermediate transfer roller 44 is subjected to intermediate transfer in response to a print request in order to reduce deterioration of the photosensitive drum 33 due to contact between the intermediate transfer belt 41 and the photosensitive drum 33. The intermediate transfer belt 41 and the photosensitive drum 33 can be separated from or brought into contact with the belt 41 as the belt 41 is moved.

  That is, the print request includes a color mode and a monochrome mode. In the color mode, each intermediate transfer roller 44 (44a to 44d) moves so as to come into contact with the back surface of the intermediate transfer belt 41. The surface of the belt 41 and each of the photosensitive drums 33 (33a to 33d) come into contact with each other so that the toner image of each hue can be primarily transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 41. On the other hand, in the monochrome mode, only the intermediate transfer roller 44a for black image formation moves so as to come into contact with the back surface of the intermediate transfer belt 41, and thereby the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 41 and the photosensitive drum for black image formation. 33a comes into contact with the black toner image so that it can be primarily transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 41.

  Although the processing according to the image data input from the outside has been described above, the image forming apparatus 1 can also print image data obtained by optically reading a document. Therefore, the image forming apparatus 1 includes a document conveyance reading unit 10.

  When the document is set on the document set tray 18 of the document conveyance reading unit 10, the document detection sensor 19 detects that the document is set. Then, by operating an operation panel (not shown) of the document conveying / reading unit 10, the print paper size, magnification, and the like are input and set. Thereafter, the start of copying is instructed by operating the operation panel.

  In response to these operations, in the document conveyance reading unit 10, each document on the document setting tray 18 is pulled out one by one by the pickup roller 20, and the document is transferred to the platen glass 12 through the gap plate 22 and the conveyance roller 21. Then, the document is conveyed on the platen glass 12 in the sub-scanning direction and discharged to the document discharge tray 23.

  At this time, the first reading unit 11 reads the surface (lower side) of the document. The first scanning unit 13 of the first reading unit 11 is moved to the position for positioning, the second scanning unit 14 is positioned at a predetermined position, and the surface of the document is placed on the platen glass 12 by the exposure lamp of the first scanning unit 13. The reflected light of the document is guided to the imaging lens 15 by the respective reflection mirrors of the first and second traveling units 13 and 14, and the reflected light of the document is guided by the imaging lens 15 to a CCD (Charge Coupled Device). The image on the surface of the original is focused on the CCD 16, thereby reading the image on the surface of the original.

  Further, the back side (upper side) of the document is read by the second reading unit 17. The second reading unit 17 is disposed above the platen glass 12 and collects reflected light of the document for each pixel of an exposure lamp (LED (Light Emitting Diode) array, fluorescent lamp, etc.) that irradiates the back side of the document. A light-sensitive Selfoc lens array and a contact image sensor (CIS) that photoelectrically converts reflected light of the original received through the Selfoc lens array and outputs an analog image signal are provided.

  Furthermore, it is possible to open the upper housing of the document conveyance reading unit 10 and place the document on the platen glass 12, and in this state, the first reading unit 11 can read the surface of the document. In this case, the first and second scanning units 13 and 14 are moved in the sub-scanning direction while maintaining a predetermined speed relationship with each other, the original on the platen glass 12 is exposed by the first scanning unit 13, and the first The reflected light from the original is guided to the imaging lens 15 by the second scanning units 13 and 14, and the image of the original is formed on the CCD 16 by the imaging lens 15.

  When one or both sides of the original are read in this way, image data indicating an image on one or both sides of the original is input to a control unit (shown in FIG. 2) such as a microcomputer, where various image processing is performed on the image data. This image data is output to the image forming unit.

  FIG. 2 is a control block diagram illustrating the configuration of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, and is also a diagram illustrating an example of a control unit and a power management unit incorporated in the image forming apparatus of FIG.

  The image forming apparatus 1 according to the present invention includes a control unit for controlling the overall operation of the apparatus, and a control unit 2 is given as an example of this. The control unit 2 includes a main control unit 2d that controls the apparatus body, a ROM 2c that stores a program for operating the apparatus, a memory (RAM) 2f that temporarily stores input image data, a setting state of the apparatus, and the like. Are electrically rewritable non-volatile memories (EEPROM, FLASH, etc .; hereinafter referred to as EEPROM) 2e, an image processing unit 2b for processing images, and the like.

  Further, the image forming apparatus 1 includes a main power supply 3 for supplying power during operation of the apparatus, a standby power supply 4 for performing facsimile reception at night, and a power supply monitoring device 2a as a power management unit. The standby power supply 4 is configured so that power supply to a specific circuit can be controlled by the power supply monitoring device 2a. Here, the specific circuit corresponds to, for example, a network communication unit such as a network card (NIC), a facsimile communication unit, or the like. Although the description will be made assuming that the power supply by the standby power supply 4 is normally supplied by the main power supply 3, the power supply may always be supplied by the standby power supply 4 (but capable of storing power). Further, although a specific circuit is not shown, it may be configured by bus connection in the same row as the image processing unit 2b. In addition, it is preferable to provide a part for supplying power from the secondary power source instead of the main power source such as a network communication unit or a facsimile communication unit, and to use this secondary power source as the standby power source 4.

  When the switch is turned on by the user, the image forming apparatus 1 starts energization inside the apparatus, initializes (resets) the inside, and starts up the apparatus. At this time, the power source monitoring device 2a monitors that the main power source 3 is energized and performs appropriate processing such as shutting off the standby power source 4.

  The main control unit 2d is mainly composed of a CPU, reads the program from the ROM 2c storing the program, initializes the RAM (memory 2f) and the device, and stores the device information used in the device stored in the EEPROM 2e. And the device is initialized. This apparatus information includes at least setting information (setting data), and may also include basic information used in the image forming apparatus 1. This setting data is set by the administrator or user of the device, and is an initial setting when performing network settings, facsimile and mail transmission destination information, paper size information of the paper cassette, and copying. This includes selection of a certain paper feed cassette, magnification setting, paper output tray selection, copy number setting, and the like. In addition, the setting data includes the total number of copies to be printed, the remaining amount of toner, the consumption status of each component, and the like.

  For this reason, it is necessary to store the latest status when the power of the apparatus is turned off, and to reflect the stored setting data in the reading operation and control in the next operation of the apparatus. That is, the setting data indicating the initial value of the device stored in the EEPROM 2e is indispensable for controlling the device and improving the user interface to the user, and is constantly updated data.

  The image processing apparatus 1 writes the state of the apparatus to the EEPROM 2e when the power supply shifts to the power saving mode or the power supply off (that is, when the main power supply 3 is turned off). At this time, the main power supplied to the EEPROM 2e due to a power failure or the like In order to prevent the EEPROM 2e from being damaged or broken when the power supply 3 becomes unstable or generates noise, a volatile memory exemplified by the memory 2f is provided. As shown in the figure, the volatile memory preferably uses a built-in memory provided as a RAM (for example, a RAM used for processing of the image processing unit 2b) as a work area of the image forming apparatus 1. The memory 2f is a second memory capable of holding a storage state by supplying power, and an SRAM or the like can be applied. Control of backup processing using the memory 2f in the present invention will be described next.

  When writing information that is all or part of the device information into the EEPROM 2e, the control unit 2 performs control to write the information to be written (not written) into the memory 2f, and turns on the standby power supply 4 Control to supply to the memory 2f is performed. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the loss of information to be written in the EEPROM 2e.

  Hereinafter, a preferred application mode will be described together with this processing procedure with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining a processing example of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a method for storing information in the volatile memory in the processing of FIG. It is.

  First, the main power supply 3 of the image forming apparatus 1 is turned on (step S1). As described above, when the image forming apparatus 1 is energized, the image forming apparatus 1 is initialized and then reads predetermined data from the EEPROM 2e, thereby setting the initial state set at the time of the previous copy or fax processing. it can. When the image forming apparatus 1 is left unused for a predetermined period of time, in order to reduce power consumption, when a print instruction arrives, such as lowering the set temperature of the fixing device or lowering the rotation speed of the polygon mirror It has a power saving mode that can print immediately and suppress power consumption.

  Further, when the image forming apparatus 1 is not used for a predetermined time from the power saving mode, the sleep mode in which only the reception function of the facsimile is energized and the other parts are energized to reduce the power in the same manner as at night. It has. At the time of transition to the sleep mode, the power supply monitoring device 2a energizes the minimum necessary functions such as FAX from the standby power source 4 under the instruction of the main control unit 2d, so that only the functions such as FAX are energized. The power consumption of the image forming apparatus 1 is performed by cutting off the energization of the configuration.

  Supplied to the image forming apparatus 1 in such a transition to the sleep mode, when the switch is turned off by the user while the image forming apparatus 1 is on standby, or when a power outage or instantaneous power outage occurs due to power supply conditions. In some cases, the main power supply 3 is cut off.

  The power supply monitoring device 2a determines that the main power supply 3 has been cut off from the ON state of the main power supply 3 by detecting that the voltage has dropped, and transmits the determination to the main control unit 2d (step). S2). The main control unit 2d that has received the voltage drop information includes setting information such as paper cassette selection, magnification setting, paper discharge tray selection, copy number setting, and the like set by the user, and control information for the image forming apparatus 1. It is necessary to store the total number of copies to be copied, the remaining amount of toner, the consumption status of each component, and the like in the EEPROM 2e which is a nonvolatile memory.

  Therefore, the main control unit 2d causes the EEPROM 2e to save the setting data for several hundred milliseconds until the main power supply 3 is completely lowered. As described above, the control unit 2 tries to execute writing to the EEPROM 2e when the state of the main power supply 3 is shifted (particularly when the state of the main power supply 3 is shifted to the non-power supply state) (executes a saving process). By executing the subsequent processing, the settings of the image forming apparatus 1 can be maintained even when the main power supply 3 is shut off due to a power failure or the like.

  The specific data described above is important data for operating the image forming apparatus 1. Therefore, when saving, specific data in the EEPROM 2e is read and verified before writing to the EEPROM 2e, and it is checked whether an abnormality such as a check sum error has occurred in the EEPROM 2e (step S3).

  If there is no abnormality in the EEPROM 2e in step S3, the setting data of the image forming apparatus 1 temporarily stored in a memory such as the RAM of the image forming apparatus 1 is recorded in the EEPROM 2e (step S4). Thereafter, when the computer is restarted (step S5), the setting data recorded from the EEPROM 2e is read to maintain the state set in the apparatus (step S6).

  In the above description, verification is performed by reading predetermined data before writing the setting data. However, after writing the setting data, the written setting data may be read and the nonvolatile memory may be verified. .

  On the other hand, if an abnormality is detected in the EEPROM 2e by verifying the EEPROM 2e in step S3, the power supply monitoring device 2a starts the standby power supply 4 and starts energizing the memory 2f such as SRAM, and the trouble information on the setting data and nonvolatile memory. And the like are stored in the memory 2f, and the process ends (step S7). As described above, it is preferable that the control unit 2 performs control to add information indicating that the EEPROM 2e is abnormal when writing information to the memory 2f. As a result, as will be described later, it is possible not only to detect an abnormality in the EEPROM 2e at the time of restart, but also to facilitate subsequent recovery processing.

  An example of a method for storing information in the memory 2f such as SRAM will be described with reference to FIG. Data indicating abnormality of the EEPROM 2e is determined in advance, and the data is written to the top 5d of the storage area 5 of the memory 2f when the EEPROM 2e is abnormal. Subsequently, information 5e such as device setting information is written. This makes it possible to detect a failure of the EEPROM 2e when accessing the memory 2f without reading the value of the EEPROM 2e. In the storage area 5, 5a indicates an address, 5b indicates the type of data, and 5c indicates information to be written.

  Following the step S7, when the main power supply 3 is turned on again (step S8), immediately after that (when the power supply is turned on again), the main control unit 2d and the sub CPUs of the respective parts are connected from the main power supply 3 in the same manner as in normal startup. Power is supplied to all the CPUs. After the power is turned on again, the main control unit 2d checks whether power is supplied from the standby power supply 4 (step S9). At this time, as described above, a configuration in which a secondary power source such as a network communication unit or a facsimile communication unit is used as the standby power source 4 is adopted, that is, the backup standby power source 4 is used inside the image forming apparatus 1. In addition to reducing the number of parts and saving space by substituting the internal power supply for other systems existing in the system, the power supply status of the internal power supply for other systems can be used to determine the power supply of the standby power supply. By doing so, system efficiency (reduction in the number of processes) can be realized.

  However, in FIG. 3, the energization state of the standby power supply 4 is ON because the process is after YES in step S <b> 3. On the other hand, immediately after step S5, the determination in step S9 is made, and it can be determined whether or not a failure is detected in step S3.

  When it is confirmed in step S9 that power is supplied from the standby power supply 4, the standby power supply 4 is notified to end the supply of power. As described above, when the main power source 3 is newly supplied, the control unit 2 determines the energized state from the standby power source 4 (that is, when the main power source 3 is determined and energized), and then from the standby power source 4. It is preferable to stop the supply to the memory 2f. After confirming the supply of the standby power supply 4, it is possible to prevent the standby power supply 4 from being consumed by stopping the supply of the backup power supply 4.

  After step S9, the setting information of the device and the trouble information of the EEPROM 2e are read not from the EEPROM 2e but from the temporarily used memory 2f such as SRAM (step S10). As described above, when the main power source 3 is newly supplied (ON), the control unit 2 determines the energization state from the standby power source 4, and when the main power source 3 is energized, the control unit 2 stores information from the memory 2f instead of the EEPROM 2e. It is preferable to perform reading. As a result, it is not necessary to read the failed EEPROM 2e, and the operation of the apparatus can be continued without using the EEPROM 2e.

  Further, when a trouble in the EEPROM 2e is detected as a result of step S10, the trouble is notified to the user (step S11). As described above, the image processing apparatus 1 includes notifying means for notifying abnormality by a warning sound or a warning display, and the control unit 2 performs the image processing apparatus 1 based on information read from the memory 2f after a new supply. When the above operation is executed, it is preferable to cause the notification means to notify the abnormality of the EEPROM 2e. By notifying the abnormality of the EEPROM 2e, it is possible to cancel an error due to a failure of the EEPROM 2e, replace a part, or the like.

  As described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, according to the present invention, the apparatus can be started without using the non-volatile memory after the energization is cut off. Therefore, the image forming apparatus 1 due to the failure of the non-volatile memory at the time of restart. Can prevent abnormal operation. In addition, it is possible to detect trouble information of the nonvolatile memory at the time of restarting, which enables the user to take measures such as replacement of the nonvolatile memory, and recovery processing after detecting the abnormality of the nonvolatile memory. Will also be easier.

1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an internal configuration example of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a control block diagram illustrating a configuration of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining a processing example of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. It is a figure which shows an example of the storage method of the information to volatile memory in the process of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Image forming apparatus, 2a ... Power supply monitoring apparatus, 2b ... Image processing part, 2c ... ROM, 2d ... Control part, 2e ... EEPROM, 2f ... Memory, 3 ... Main power supply, 4 ... Standby power supply.

Claims (7)

  In an image processing apparatus that performs image processing, a main power supply for supplying power to the entire apparatus to operate the image processing apparatus, a standby power supply for supplying power to a part of the image processing apparatus, A control means for controlling the image processing apparatus, a non-volatile memory for storing apparatus information used in the image processing apparatus including setting information, and a volatile memory capable of holding a storage state by power supply, The control means writes the information to the volatile memory and writes the backup power to the volatile memory when the information that becomes all or part of the device information cannot be written when writing to the nonvolatile memory. An image processing apparatus characterized by being supplied.   The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the information is written in the volatile memory, the control unit adds information indicating that the nonvolatile memory is abnormal and writes the information.   3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit executes writing to the nonvolatile memory when the state of the main power source shifts to a non-power supply state. 4.   When the main power is newly supplied, the control means determines the energization state from the standby power, and when energized, reads the information from the volatile memory instead of the nonvolatile memory. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein:   Informing means for notifying the abnormality of the image processing apparatus, the control means when the operation of the image processing apparatus is executed based on information read from the volatile memory after the new supply The image processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the notification unit notifies the abnormality of the nonvolatile memory.   6. The control unit according to claim 3, wherein when the main power source is newly supplied, the control unit stops the supply from the standby power source after determining the energized state from the standby power source. The image processing apparatus according to any one of the above.   7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a portion that supplies power from a sub power source without supplying power from the main power source, and uses the sub power source as the backup power source. 8.

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