JP2009071611A - Image forming apparatus, data processing method in image forming apparatus, and data processing program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide: an image forming apparatus such that the independence of a function unit performing inter-process communication is high in data processing in the image forming apparatus, and functions of a transmission and a reception side can be easily expanded; a data processing method in image forming apparatus; and a data processing program. <P>SOLUTION: The image forming apparatus 100 has a first process in which a first function 71 operates and a second process in which a second function requested by the first process to perform predetermined processing operates, and has a holding means 76 for holding storage destination information on a software component 64 specifying processing requested by a request message 81 transmitted from the first process according to the request message 81, and an execution means 77 for executing the processing, specified by the software component 64 executed based upon the storage destination information held by the holding means 76, in the second process when the second process receives the request message 81. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention provides an image forming apparatus that performs inter-process communication between a first function among a plurality of functions of the image forming apparatus and a second function that requires a predetermined process from the first function. The present invention relates to a data processing method and a data processing program in an image forming apparatus.

  A multifunction peripheral is generally known as an image forming apparatus having a plurality of functions such as a copy, a fax, a printer, and a scanner.

  In such an image forming apparatus that operates a plurality of functions, for example, a multitask OS (Operating System) such as UNIX (registered trademark) is mounted, and a number of processes are started on the OS, and the started processes are started. A number of processes are processed in parallel by operating each functional module.

  In such a multi-process environment in which a plurality of processes operate, two-way data communication is performed between processes.

  For example, the functions of the image forming apparatus include an apparatus information providing unit that provides information for an external device to automatically detect the image forming apparatus, and an application management unit that manages applications such as a printer and a scanner. These two functions operate in different processes in a multi-process environment. For this reason, when the device information providing unit provides information to an external device, information on each application must be acquired from the application management unit. At this time, in the image forming apparatus, the information acquisition request message is transmitted from the process in which the device information providing unit operates to the process in which the application management unit operates, and as a result, the device information providing unit starts from the process in which the application management unit operates. The requested information is sent to the running process.

  As described above, in an image forming apparatus in a multi-process environment, inter-process communication is performed as one of data processing inside the apparatus.

For example, Patent Document 1 states that “an image forming apparatus having hardware resources and a program, which receives an agent including one or more service requests, and provides one or more control services for each service request of the agent. An image forming apparatus is disclosed that includes an agent processing unit that selects and makes a service request for the selected control service, thereby realizing a variable architecture and various functions.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2007-12057

  However, in the conventional image forming apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, a module that performs inter-process communication and a module that performs processing according to a request are integrated. For this reason, the communication module that operates in each process must be designed and implemented according to the details of the processing performed on the transmission / reception side and the communication purpose, etc. It was complicated for me.

  As described above, the data processing function in the conventional image forming apparatus has low independence of the function unit that performs the inter-process communication (because the function unit that performs the inter-process communication depends on the agreement on the transmission / reception side). It was difficult to expand the functions on the transmission / reception side.

  In the present invention, in view of the above-described problems of the prior art, in the data processing in the image forming apparatus, the function unit that performs inter-process communication is highly independent, and the function on the transmission / reception side can be easily expanded. An object of the present invention is to provide a data processing method and a data processing program in an image forming apparatus.

  In order to achieve the above object, the image forming apparatus according to the present invention operates a first process in which the first function operates and a second function in which execution of a predetermined process is requested from the first process. An image forming apparatus having a second process, the process being executed by the image forming apparatus in response to a request message transmitted from the first process and requesting the predetermined process. When the second process receives the request message transmitted from the first process and the storage unit that stores the storage location information of the software component that specifies the processing requested by the request message. The processing requested by the request message specified by the software component executed based on the storage location information held by the holding means And having and execution means for executing the process.

  In order to achieve the above object, an image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a communication control unit that includes a communication control interface common to the first function and the second function, and transmits and receives data between processes. And the communication control means sends a response message corresponding to the request to the first process based on an execution result of the predetermined process requested by the request message and executed in the second process. It is characterized by transmitting.

  In order to achieve the above object, the image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a transmission instruction unit that instructs transmission of the request message, transmission of the request message, and transmission of the response message in response to the request in the communication control unit. Response receiving instruction means for instructing reception waiting, request waiting instruction means for instructing reception waiting for the request message, and storage destination information setting instruction means for instructing setting of storage destination information of the software component And

  In order to achieve the above object, in the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the request message includes a function name indicating a process executed by the request message, a parameter value used when the process is performed, and the parameter value. And the number of parameters indicating the number of.

  In order to achieve the above object, in the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the software component is a process requested by the request message based on the function name of the request message received in the second process. It is characterized by specifying.

  In order to achieve the above object, the image forming apparatus of the present invention is specified by the software component in the execution unit based on the parameter value of the request message received in the second process. The processing requested by the request message is performed.

  In order to achieve the above object, the image forming apparatus of the present invention determines whether or not the number of parameter values of the request message received in the second process matches the number of parameters of the previous request message. And data verification means for verifying the data of the request message.

  As a result, the image forming apparatus according to the present invention is configured so that the function unit that performs inter-process communication and the main function unit on the transmission / reception side are configured by different programs, and the image forming apparatus responds to a request message that requests a predetermined process. The main function unit on the transmission / reception side has a program that identifies the process requested by the request message and executes the process from among the processes that can be executed by the request message, and this program can be registered in advance as a function that performs interprocess communication By adopting the configuration, the processing that depends on the agreement on the transmission / reception side when performing inter-process communication is integrated into the function on the transmission / reception side. Since no data is included, the function unit that performs inter-process communication is highly independent in the data processing in the image forming apparatus, and the function on the transmission / reception side It can be extended easily.

  In order to achieve the above object, a data processing method in an image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a first process in which a first function operates and a second process in which execution of a predetermined process is required from the first process. The request message from among the processes executable by the image forming apparatus in response to the second process in which the function is operated and the request message requesting the predetermined process transmitted from the first process. A data processing method in the image forming apparatus having a storage unit that stores storage location information of software parts that specify processing requested by the processing, wherein the request message transmitted from the first process is When the software component is received by the second process, the software component is executed based on the storage location information held by the holding unit, and the software component is executed. To identify the processing required by the request message, and executes the processing specified in the second process.

  Thus, the data communication method of the present invention is requested by a request message from among the processes executable by the image forming apparatus in response to a request message for requesting a predetermined process possessed by the main functional unit on the transmission / reception side. A program that identifies and executes the process is registered in advance in the functional unit that performs inter-process communication, and when the request message is received by the functional unit that performs inter-process communication on the receiving side, the registered program is executed. As a result, processing that depends on the agreement on the transmission / reception side when performing inter-process communication is integrated into the function unit on the transmission / reception side, and the program code that depends on the agreement on the transmission / reception side Since data is not included, in the data processing in the image forming apparatus, the independence of the functional unit that performs inter-process communication is high. A receiving-side function can be easily expanded.

  In order to achieve the above object, a data processing program in an image forming apparatus of the present invention includes a first process in which a first function operates and a second process that requests a predetermined process for the first process. In response to the second process in which the function operates and the request message transmitted from the first process and requesting the predetermined process, the request message can be selected from the processes that can be executed by the image forming apparatus. A data processing program in an image forming apparatus having a storage unit that stores storage location information of software components that specify a requested process, wherein the request message is transmitted to the computer from the first process Is received in the second process, the software component is executed based on the storage location information held by the holding means, Software by executing part, the request message to identify the differentially processing request by, to execute the identified said processing in the second process.

  As a result, the data processing program in the image forming apparatus of the present invention performs the image forming in response to a request message for requesting a predetermined process which is registered in advance in the main function unit on the transmission / reception side of the computer. A function that identifies a process requested by a request message from processes that can be executed by the device and executes the program when the request message is received by a function unit that performs inter-process communication on the receiving side. Can be made.

  Therefore, the data processing method program in the image forming apparatus according to the present invention is a function unit that performs inter-process communication by integrating processing that depends on an agreement on the transmission / reception side when performing inter-process communication into the function unit on the transmission / reception side. Therefore, there is no program code or data that depends on the agreement on the transmission / reception side, and therefore, in the data processing in the image forming apparatus, the function unit that performs inter-process communication is highly independent, and the function on the transmission / reception side is easy. An extended “data processing function in the image forming apparatus” can be realized.

  According to the present invention, in the data processing in the image forming apparatus, the function unit that performs inter-process communication is highly independent, and the function on the transmission / reception side can be easily expanded, and the data in the image forming apparatus A processing method and a data processing program can be provided.

  DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention (hereinafter referred to as “embodiments”) will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[First Embodiment]
<Hardware configuration>
A hardware configuration of the image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of an image forming apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  The image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment includes an operation panel 11, a storage medium I / F 12, a controller 13, a data communication I / F 14, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 17, a scanner 15, and a plotter 16. Are connected to each other.

  The operation panel 11 includes an input device 11a and a display device 11b. The input device 11a includes hardware keys and is used to input each operation signal to the image forming apparatus 100. Further, the display device 11b is configured by a display or the like, and displays, for example, various types of information related to the image forming operation. The data communication I / F 14 includes an interface device 14a, and is an interface that connects the image forming apparatus 100 to a data transmission path such as a network. The HDD 17 stores various data such as received document data and read image data handled by the image forming apparatus 100. Further, the HDD 17 manages these various data by a predetermined file system or DB (Data Base).

  The various data stored in the HDD 17 includes electronic data recorded by an external device such as a digital camera. In such a case, it is provided to the image forming apparatus 100 by a recording medium 12b such as a memory card or uploaded via a network or the like that is a data transmission path. The recording medium 12b is set in the drive device 12a included in the storage medium I / F 12, and various data are stored in the HDD 17 from the recording medium 12b via the drive device 12a.

  The controller 13 includes a ROM (Read Only Memory) 13a, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 13b, and a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 13c. The ROM 13a is executed when the image forming apparatus 100 is activated. Program and various data are stored. The RAM 13b temporarily stores various programs and data read from the ROM 13a and the HDD 17. Further, the CPU 13c executes a program temporarily stored in the RAM 13b. For example, when the print data is received via the data communication I / F 14, the controller 13 reads a program (PDL parser) that can read PDL (Page Description Language) read from the ROM 13a onto the RAM 13b by the CPU 13c. Execute and interpret the print data to generate a bitmap image.

  The scanner 15 includes an image reading device 15a, and optically reads a document placed on a reading surface and generates image data. The plotter 16 has a printing device 16a and prints a bitmap image on a recording sheet by, for example, an electrophotographic process method.

  As described above, the image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment realizes a plurality of functions such as a copy, a printer, a facsimile, and a scanner by the above hardware configuration.

<Software configuration>
Next, the software configuration of the image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a software configuration of the image forming apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

<< Image forming apparatus >>
The image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment includes the plotter 16 illustrated in FIG. 1, the scanner 15, the hardware resources 101 such as a facsimile machine and the HDD 17, and the like, and the platform 120 and the application 130 activated by the activation unit 140. And a software group 110 composed of

  The platform 120 interprets a processing request from the application 130 and generates a hardware resource acquisition request, manages one or more hardware resources, and arbitrates the acquisition request from the control service 150. An SRM (System Resource Manager) 123 and an OS (Operating System) 121 are included.

  The control service 150 is formed of a plurality of service modules, and includes an SCS (System Control Service) 122, an ECS (Engine Control Service) 124, an MCS (Memory Control Service) 125, an OCS (Operation Panel Control Service) 126, It consists of FCS (FAX Control Service) 127 and NCS (Network Control Service) 128.

  The platform 120 includes an API (Application Program Interface) 103 that can receive a processing request from the application 130 by a predefined method, a plotter 16, a scanner 15, and other hardware resources 101. It has an engine I / F 102 that is an interface for controlling via the OS 121 in accordance with a request from an upper layer that uses resources.

  The OS 121 is a general-purpose operating system such as UNIX (registered trademark), and executes the software of the platform 120 and the application 130 in parallel as processes.

  The SRM 123, together with the SCS 122, controls the system and manages resources, and includes engines such as the plotter 16 and the scanner 15, memory, HDD files, host I / O (for example, Centro I / F, network I / F, IEEE 1394). I / F, RS232C I / F, etc.) arbitration is performed according to a request from an upper layer using hardware resources, and execution control is performed.

  Specifically, the SRM 123 determines whether the requested hardware resource is available (whether it is not used by another request), and if it is available, the requested hardware resource is used. Tell the upper layer that it is possible. Also, the SRM 123 performs hardware resource usage scheduling in response to a request from an upper layer, and directly executes the request contents (for example, paper conveyance and image forming operation, memory allocation, file generation, etc. by the printer engine). Yes.

  The SCS 122 performs application management, operation unit control, system screen display, LED (Light Emitting Diode) display, resource management, and interrupt application control. The ECS 124 controls a hardware resource engine including the plotter 16 and the scanner 15.

  The MCS 125 acquires and releases an image memory, uses an HDD, compresses and decompresses image data, and the like. The OCS 126 is a module that controls the operation panel 11 serving as information transmission means between the operator and the main body control.

  The FCS 127 transmits / receives facsimiles using PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Networks) / ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network) from each application layer of the system controller, and various facsimile data managed by BKM (Backup SRAM: Static Random Access Memory). An API for performing registration / quotation, facsimile reading, facsimile reception printing, and fusion transmission / reception is provided. In the FCS 127, an FCU handler (FCUH) that is a subprocess thereof is activated. The FCUH controls the device driver of the facsimile engine when performing facsimile transmission / reception according to a command from the FCS 127.

  The NCS 128 is a module group for providing a service that can be commonly used for the applications 130 that require network I / O.

  The NCS 128 has a data processing function according to this embodiment. Specific software components (programs) constituting the NCS 128 will be described with reference to FIG.

  The application 130 includes a printer application 111 that is a printer application having a page description language (PDL) such as PCL or Postscript (PS), a copy application 112 that is a copy application, and a fax application 113 that is a facsimile application. A scanner application 114 that is a scanner application, a network file application 115 that is a network file application, a process inspection application 116 that is a process inspection application, and a distribution application 117 that is a distribution application. Yes.

  Each of these control services, SRM 123, and each application 130 is an object having one or more methods, and is generated and executed on the OS 121 as a process by activating this object. A plurality of threads are activated in each process, and parallel execution is realized by switching the CPU occupation time of these threads under the management of the OS 121. For this reason, compared with parallel execution by process switching, the processing speed at the time of parallel execution is improved.

  Messages are transmitted and received between each application process and each control service process by inter-process communication by executing a method.

<< NCS >>
From here, the NCS 128 having the data processing function according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.
(Overview of software configuration)
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the software configuration of the NCS 128 according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  The software configuration of the NCS 128 according to the present embodiment is mainly composed of a module group that distributes data received by each protocol to each application 130 and mediates when data is transmitted from the application 130 to the network side. Among the module groups, there is a WS-MFP module group 20 according to the present embodiment.

  Here, the above-mentioned “WS” means a standardized Web service based on XML (Extensible Markup Language) promoted by a working group (WG) of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). As for “WS”, an open document “Devices Profile for Web Services” in which the details are disclosed is disclosed, and the description thereof is omitted here. The URL for obtaining the published document is “http://specs.xmlsoap.org/ws/2006/02/devprof/devicesprofile.pdf”. In the following description, function names and module names with “WS” are functions and modules designed in accordance with this standardized Web service. For example, the WS-MFP module group 20 is a module group for a multifunction machine designed in accordance with a standardized Web service.

  The WS-MFP module group 20 shown in FIG. 3 includes a WS-Printer 21p that handles printer-related data between the external device and the printer application 111 included in the image forming apparatus 100, and a scanner application included in the external device and the image forming apparatus 100. 114 includes a WS-Scanner 21 s that handles scanner-related data, and a DFM module 22 that handles device-related data between the external device and the image forming apparatus 100. Implemented to be invoked and run in a process.

  For example, the WS-Printer 21p has a function of responding to an information acquisition request regarding the printer application 111 from the DFM module 22 and notifying the printer application 111 of a print request from an external device. The DFM module 22 acquires application information such as the printer application 111 and the scanner application 114 from the WS-Printer 21p, WS-Scanner 21s, and the like, and standardization that the image forming apparatus 100 can provide to external devices based on the acquired information. Device information including information related to the Web service is transmitted.

  As described above, the image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment includes the NCS 128 configured as described above, so that data can be transmitted and received between the external device and the image forming apparatus 100.

In the above description, the case where the printer-related information held by the WS-Printer 21p is acquired from the DFM module 22 has been described. However, since the printer-related information is operated by different processes, data is transmitted and received by inter-process communication.
(Details of software configuration)
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of inter-process communication inside the WS-MFP module group 20 according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the WS-MFP module group 20 according to the present embodiment includes a DFM module 22, a WS-Printer 21p, and a WS-Scanner 21s, and each software component is activated and operated in a separate process. To be implemented. Each software component is linked with an IMC (Internal Message Communication) 51 library having an inter-process communication function.

  Below, the main software components which comprise each DFM module 22, WS-Printer 21p, and WS-Scanner 21s are demonstrated.

  The WS-Printer 21p is composed of a Printer DCP 41p and a WS-Eventing 42p.

  The Printer DCP 41 p transmits and receives printer-related data between a function (for example, a printer driver) of an external device that uses the printer function and the printer application 111 of the image forming apparatus 100. The WS-Eventing 42p notifies the printer application 111 of the image forming apparatus 100 of a processing request event such as a print request transmitted from a function of an external device that uses the printer function.

  With the above functional configuration, the WS-Printer 21p prints the received image data by the printer application 111 included in the image forming apparatus 100 in accordance with a print request from the external device, for example, and notifies the external device that printing has been completed. To achieve the process.

  WS-Scanner 21s is composed of Scanner DCP 41s and WS-Eventing 42s. The Scanner DCP 41 s transmits and receives scanner-related data between a function (for example, document management software) of an external device that uses the scanner function and the scanner application 114 of the image forming apparatus 100. Also, the WS-Eventing 42s notifies the scanner application 114 of the image forming apparatus 100 of a processing request event such as an image reading request transmitted from a function of an external device that uses the scanner function.

  The WS-Scanner 21s performs processing for reading the document by the scanner application 114 included in the image forming apparatus 100 according to the image reading request from the external device, and notifying the external device that the reading is completed. Is realized.

  The DFM module 22 includes a WS-Discovery 31, a WS-Transfer 32, a WS-Metadata Exchange 33, and a WSD-Manager 34.

  WS-Discovery 31 uses a standardized Web service to generate a message for detecting the function of an external device that a device (WS-Device) capable of providing an installed application function has joined the network, and forming an image with the external device. Data is transmitted to and received from the device 100.

  The WS-Transfer 32 transmits and receives a message for notifying information (device information) related to a standardized Web service that can be provided by the image forming apparatus 100 between the external device and the image forming apparatus 100. Also, the WS-Transfer 32 notifies the external device that the image forming apparatus 100 has joined the network by using UDP (User Datagram Protocol) (for example, a “Hello” command is sent to all the external devices connected to the network. Multicast to).

  The WS-MetadataExchange 33 generates data of information related to standardized Web services that can be provided by the image forming apparatus 100 based on information related to each application acquired from the WS-Printer 21p and the WS-Scanner 21s by the inter-process communication function of the IMC 51. .

  The WSD-Manager 34 performs operation control and management of the WS-Discovery 31, the WS-Transfer 32, the WS-Metadata Exchange 33, and the DCPs 41p and 41s included in the WS-Printer 21p and the WS-Scanner 21s.

  The DFM module 22 realizes the automatic detection function of the image forming apparatus 100 capable of providing an installed application function by, for example, a standardized Web service with the above-described functional configuration.

  The IMC 51 has an inter-process communication function, and does not function as a software component independently, such as other DFM modules 22, WS-Printer 21p, and WS-Scanner 21s. On the other hand, an interprocess communication program group for performing transmission / reception of data between processes is provided as a single file, that is, a library.

  Hereinafter, the inter-process communication program group of the IMC 51 provided as a library will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the software configuration of the IMC 51 according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

(Software configuration of IMC library)
The software configuration of the IMC 51 implemented in the present embodiment is composed of three layers as shown in FIG. 5A, and each layer has a plurality of programs for performing inter-process communication.

[IMCI / F layer]
The IMCI / F layer 61 has functions 61a to 61d (four functions shown below) that can be actually called from the program code of a software component that uses the inter-process communication function (module that realizes the function on the transmission / reception side). Is a grouped layer.
(A) PutMsg () 61a (a program that realizes a function corresponding to the transmission instruction means)
A function that indicates sending a request message.
(B) SendReceive () 61b (a program for realizing the function corresponding to the response reception instruction means)
A function that instructs to wait for receiving a response message after sending a request message.
(C) GetMsg () 61c (a program that implements a function corresponding to the request waiting instruction means)
A function that indicates waiting to receive a request message.
(D) registAPI () 61d (program that implements the function corresponding to the storage location information setting instruction means)
Storage location information of a software component (hereinafter referred to as “callback function”) that identifies a process requested by the request message from processes that can be executed by the image forming apparatus 100 in response to the request message and executes the process. (Hereinafter, referred to as “pointer to callback function”) setting function (function for instructing registration of callback function).

  The functions 61a to 61d are associated with four operation instructions assumed when the request message shown in FIG. For example, when a response message corresponding to a processing request from the receiving side is not required and only a request message requesting processing to be performed on the receiving side is desired (in the case of (1) shown in the figure), the program code From this, the function PutMsg () 61a may be called. When it is desired to shift to a state of waiting for reception of a request message transmitted from the transmission side (in the case of (3) shown in the figure), the function GetMsg () 61c may be called from the program code.

  As described above, the IMCI / F layer 61 provides an interface for instructing only basic operations that do not depend on an agreement such as processing contents and communication purpose on the transmission / reception side in order to realize a highly independent interprocess communication function. ing.

[API internal processing layer]
The API internal processing layer 62 is a layer in which functions 62a to 62e (five functions shown below) that perform actual processing (internal processing) corresponding to each function of the IMCI / F layer 61 are collected.
(E) Send () 62a
A function that is called from the function PutMsg () 61a located in the upper layer and only transmits a request message.
(F) RequestResponse () 62b
A function that is called from the function SendReceive () 61b located in the upper layer and performs processing from transmission of a request message to reception of a response message.
(G) Receive () 62c
A function that is called from the function GetMsg () 61c located in the upper layer and performs preprocessing to a request message reception standby state. The function Receive () 62c internally executes the following functions.
Bind ()
A function that identifies a socket by specifying an “IP address” or “port number” for the socket created by the socket () function.
・ Listen ()
A function that waits for a connection establishment request from the function connect ().
・ Accept ()
A function that receives a setup request from the function connect () and creates a new socket to actually establish the data line.
(H) ProcessReceivedMsg () 62d
A function that performs processing from reception of a request message to transmission of a response message in a request message reception waiting state after execution of the function Receive () 62c.
(I) Register () 62e
A function that sets storage location information (pointer to a function) of a software component (callback function) that is called from a function registAPI () 61d located in an upper layer and specifies a process requested by a request message, that is, a registration instruction Is a function that registers a callback function.

[Transmission / reception processing execution layer]
The transmission / reception processing execution layer 63 is called from each function of the API internal processing layer 62, and is a layer in which functions 63a to 63c (three functions shown below: communication control means) for performing data transmission / reception processing between processes are collected. It is.
(J) Connect () 63a
A function that is called from the function Send () 62a and the function RequestResponse () 62b located in the upper layer, executes the function connect (), and makes a connection establishment request.
(K) SendMsg () 63b
A function that is called from the function Send () 62a, the function RequestResponse () 62b, and the ProcessReceivedMsg () 62d located in the upper layer, executes the function send (), and transmits data.
(L) Recv () 63c
A function that is called from the function RequestResponse () 62b and ProcessReceivedMsg () 62d located in the upper layer, executes the function recv (), and receives data.

[Other (callback function)]
(M) callCB () 64 (program that implements the function corresponding to the execution means)
A function (a function registered by calling registAPI () 61d) that specifies a process requested by a request message by a function Register () 62e located in an upper layer and executes the process.

  When the receiving side IMC 51 receives the request message, the function callCB () 64 is called and executed by the function ProcessReceivedMsg () 62d located in the upper layer based on the pointer to the set function callCB64. The function callCB () 64 is included in, for example, the DFM module 22 on the reception side, and the function callCB () 64 is called back to the IMC 51 on the reception side based on the set pointer value ( Hereinafter, it is referred to as a “call destination function”). Such a function callCB () 64 is called a callback function.

  As described above, in the image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment, the interprocess communication performed between the DFM module 22 operating in different processes and the WS-Printer 21p or the WS-Scanner 21s is executed by the interprocess communication program of the IMC 51. It is realized by doing. In the present embodiment, the software components of the DFM module 22, WS-Printer 21p, and WS-Scanner 21s are linked and mounted with each IMC 51 library so that the inter-process communication program of the IMC 51 can be used. To do.

<Data processing function in interprocess communication>
Next, based on the hardware and software configurations described so far, the “data processing function in inter-process communication” included in the image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of a data processing function in the image forming apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

<< Overview of functional configuration >>
The image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment mainly includes a reception-side functional unit 71 that performs processing in response to a request from the transmission side, a transmission-side functional unit 72 that requests processing from the reception side, and a transmission side. The inter-process communication unit 73 that performs inter-process communication between the functional unit 71 and the functional unit 72 on the receiving side.

  Further, in each of the functional units, the software components of the WS-MFP module group 20 described in FIG. 4 are read from the ROM 13a arranged in the controller 13 of the image forming apparatus 100 onto the RAM 13b and executed by the CPU 13c. It is a function realized by being done.

  For example, the process performed by the DFM module 22 performed when “when the DFM module 22 obtains information related to a service that can be provided from the WP-Printer 21p, WS-Scanner 21s, etc. in response to a request to an external device” and the WP-Printer 21p Alternatively, in the inter-process communication with the process in which the WS-Scanner 21s operates, the function unit 71 on the transmission side corresponds to the DMF module 22, the function unit 72 on the reception side corresponds to the WS-Printer 21p or WS-Scanner 21s, and the inter-process communication unit 73 corresponds to the IMC 51 It hits. In this way, the above functions are realized by each software component.

<< Overview of each functional part >>
An outline of each of the main functional units listed above will be described.

  The reception-side function unit 71 includes an initialization unit 71a and a content interpretation unit 71b.

  The initialization unit 71a performs pre-operation processing when the reception-side functional unit 71 is activated. Among them, the initialization unit 71a specifies a pointer to a function of the callback function 64 for specifying the processing requested by the request message and executing the processing as the preprocessing on the receiving side, and the interprocess communication unit 73 on the receiving side. Set to. That is, the callback function 64 included in the receiving-side function unit 71 is registered in the receiving-side interprocess communication unit 73.

  The content interpreter 71b receives the request to identify the process requested by the request message from the processes executable by the image forming apparatus 100 in response to the request message transmitted from the function unit 72 on the transmission side. It has a dispatch function that switches processing performed by the function unit 71 on the receiving side according to the content of the message. The content interpretation unit 71b is a function realized by executing the callback function 64 registered in the preprocessing stage by the initialization unit 71a.

  The function unit 72 on the transmission side includes a message setting unit 72m. The message setting unit 72m transmits a request message transmitted from the function unit 72 on the transmission side according to the processing content requested to the function unit 71 on the reception side. Set. The message setting unit 72m sets a request message using the I / F functions 61a to 61d provided by the inter-process communication unit 73.

  The inter-process communication unit 73 includes a transmission unit 74, a reception unit 75, a procedure registration unit 76, and a registration procedure execution unit 77.

  The transmission unit 74 transmits a request message issued based on the setting from the message setting unit 72m to the process in which the function unit 71 on the reception side operates. The receiving unit 75 receives the request message transmitted by the transmitting unit 74 included in the function unit 72 on the transmitting side.

  The procedure registration unit 76 holds a pointer to a function of the callback function 64 set by the initialization unit 71a included in the receiving-side function unit 71 in a predetermined storage area (function corresponding to a holding unit). Therefore, the procedure registration unit 76 reserves a predetermined storage area from the storage area of the RAM 13b when the reception-side functional unit 71 is activated. Also, the registration procedure execution unit 77 specifies a process requested by the request message based on the pointer to the function of the callback function 64 held by the procedure registration unit 76, and sets the callback function 64 to execute the process. Instruct execution. As a result, the execution control of the process shifts from the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side to the functional unit 71 on the receiving side, and the specified process is executed by the callback function 64. The registration procedure execution unit 77 is a function realized by executing a call destination function included in the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side.

<< Operation overview >>
Next, the operation of the “data processing function in inter-process communication” according to the present embodiment by each of the functional units will be described.

(1) Waiting for request message reception (pre-processing): receiving side First, when an operating process is started, the receiving-side functional unit 71 performs initialization processing predetermined by the initializing unit 71a. First, the initialization unit 71a calls a function registAPI () 61d provided by the IMC 51, specifies a process requested by a request message, and executes a pointer to a function of a callback function (function callCB) 64 that executes the process. It is set in the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side (function callCB64 is registered). As a result, the pointer to the set function is held by the procedure registration unit 76 included in the interprocess communication unit 73 on the receiving side. Thereafter, the initialization unit 61d calls a function GetMsg () 61c provided by the IMC 51, and shifts to a reception waiting state for a request message from the transmission side.

(2) Setting / transmission of request message: transmission side The function unit 72 on the transmission side sets a request message by the message setting unit 72m. The message setting unit 72m calls the function PutMsg () 61a or the function SendReceive () 61b provided by the IMC 51 in accordance with the processing content requested to the function unit 71 on the receiving side, and sets the request message. Thereafter, the inter-process communication unit 73 on the transmission side passes the request message issued based on the setting by the message setting unit 72m to the transmission unit 74 included in the inter-process communication unit 73 on the transmission side, and the functional unit on the reception side To 71. The transmission unit 74 is executed by a function Send () 62a or a function RequestResponse () 62b called inside the function PutMsg () 61a or the function SendReceive () 61b.

(3) Reception and content interpretation of request message: receiving side The inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side receives the request message by the receiving unit 75. The receiving unit 75 is executed by a function Receive () 62c and a function ProcessReceivedMsg () 62d called inside the function GetMsg () 61c.

(4) Activating the request message content interpretation function: receiving side When receiving the request message, the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side uses the registration procedure execution unit 77 to point to a function held by the procedure registration unit 76 Based on (a pointer to the function callCB () 64), the callback function 64 is executed (the function callCB () 64 is called back). At this time, the received request message is passed as an argument of the callback function 64 via the callee function. In this way, the content interpretation unit 71b of the reception-side functional unit 71 is activated.

(5) Execution of requested processing: receiving side The function unit 71 on the receiving side is requested by the content interpretation unit 71b according to a request message from among the processes that can be executed by the image forming apparatus according to the request message. And the specified process is executed by the function unit 71 on the receiving side. The content interpretation unit 71b identifies the processing requested by the request message based on the predetermined information of the request message passed from the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side.

(6) Transmission of response message: reception side When the reception-side functional unit 71 transmits a response message in response to a request to the transmission-side functional unit 72, the processing result specified and executed by the content interpretation unit 71b Then, the data is transferred to the transmission unit 74 included in the inter-process communication unit 73 on the reception side and transmitted to the functional unit 72 on the transmission side. The transmission unit 74 is executed by a function Send () 62a called inside the function PutMsg () 61a.

<Details of data processing function in inter-process communication>
In the “data processing function in inter-process communication” according to the present embodiment, the processes (1) to (6) performed in the above operation will be described in more detail.

<< Pre-registration of content interpretation processing (dispatcher) >>
The initialization unit 71a included in the function unit 17 on the reception side calls the function registAPI () 61d provided by the IMC 51, identifies the processing requested by the request message, and realizes the function of the content interpretation unit 71b that executes the processing. A pointer to the function of the callback function 64 is set in the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side and held in the procedure registration unit 76 (registers the callback function 64). That is, the initialization unit 71a uses a pointer to the function callCB () 64 that realizes the function of the content interpretation unit 71b included in the reception-side function unit 17, and a pointer to a call destination function included in the inter-process communication unit 73 on the reception side. Set by substituting for. However, in addition to this method, there is a method of passing a pointer to the function of the callback function 64 via an argument of the callee function, and the present embodiment is not limited to this method.

  Therefore, the above processing performed by the initialization unit 71a sets a program that realizes the function of the content interpretation unit 71b as the callback function 64, so that when the reception-side functional unit 71 is activated, the reception side becomes the transmission side. This must be done before the request message is received.

  As a result, in the data processing function according to the present embodiment, execution control can be transferred from the callee function to the callback function 64 by causing the callback function 64 to be executed from the callee function. That is, the content interpretation function of the request message depending on the processing contents on the transmission / reception side and the communication purpose can be processed separately from the function of the inter-process communication unit 73 (from the inter-process communication unit 73 to the function on the reception side). The execution control can be transferred to the unit 71), and the independence of the functional unit that performs inter-process communication is increased.

<< Request message settings >>
The message setting unit 72m included in the function unit 72 on the transmission side calls the function PutMsg () 61a or the function SendReceive () 61b provided by the IMC 51 according to the processing content requested to the function unit 71 on the reception side. Set request message via argument. At this time, function arguments are set in the function PutMsg () 61a or the function SendReceive () 61b based on the data specification of the request message described below.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the data specification of the request message 81 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 shows an example in which the WS-Printer 21p according to the present embodiment is the function unit 72 on the transmission side.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the data specification of the request message 81 according to the present embodiment includes a “function name” indicating processing executed by the request message 81 and “data” indicating the number of parameter values used when the processing is performed. The “number” and “data”, which is a parameter value used when processing, are configured for each “inter-process communication purpose”.

  The above data specifications are determined in advance between the sending side and the receiving side based on the “purpose of interprocess communication” and “processing on the receiving side for each purpose” to be exchanged between the processes. According to the above, it is converted into data in a predetermined format.

  The message setting unit 72m included in the function unit 72 on the transmission side includes “function name”, “number of data”, and “data” of the above data specifications as function arguments in the program code for realizing the function unit 72 on the transmission side. The function PutMsg () 61 a or the function SendReceive () 61 b provided by the IMCI / F layer 61 for which “is set” is called, and the issued request message 81 is set.

  For example, when the function unit 72 on the transmission side notifies the reception-side function unit 71 of the completion of the processing of the WS-Printer 21p in the process, the message setting unit 72m sets “function name = DCP2DFM_Unregister”, “ By calling the function PutMsg () 61a or the function SendReceive () 61b in which “number of data = 1” and “data = (value of InstanceID)” are called, a WS-Printer 21p processing end notification message is set. As a result, the transmission unit 74 included in the inter-process communication unit 73 on the transmission side transmits the issued request message 81 to the functional unit 71 on the reception side.

  As described above, in the data processing function according to the present embodiment, the function PutMsg () 61 a or the function SendReceive () 61 b that performs message transmission provided by the IMCI / F layer 61 determines the function corresponding to the purpose of the inter-process communication. Not what you want.

  Thereby, in the data processing function according to the present embodiment, the request message setting function depending on the processing contents on the transmission / reception side and the communication purpose can be processed separately from the function of the inter-process communication unit 73, Independence of functional units that perform inter-process communication is increased.

<< Request message content interpretation (dispatch) >>
The content interpretation unit 72b included in the reception-side functional unit 71 is instructed to be executed by a registration procedure execution unit 77 included in the inter-process communication unit 73 on the reception side.

  When the reception unit 75 of the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side receives the request message 81, the registration procedure execution unit 77 uses the request message based on the pointer to the function callCB () 64 held by the procedure registration unit 76. The function callCB () 64 specifying the processing requested by 81 is called back. At this time, the received request message 81 is passed as an argument of the function callCB () 64. In this way, the content interpretation unit 71b of the reception-side functional unit 71 is activated.

  The content interpretation unit 72b interprets the data of the request message 81 received via the argument, and interprets “function name”, “number of data”, and “data” in the data. As a result, the content interpretation unit 72b specifies the process requested by the request message 81 from the processes that can be executed by the image forming apparatus 100 based on the “function name” obtained by the interpretation. That is, according to the content of the received request message 81, a process performed by the function unit 71 on the receiving side is dispatched.

  The function callCB () 64 that realizes the function of the content interpretation unit 72b is a function of the functional unit 71 on the reception side, and is designed according to the processing content on the transmission / reception side, the communication purpose, and the like. Based on the “function name” of the request message 81 received via the argument, the process corresponding to the “function name” in which the processing procedure is coded in advance is specified from the data specification of the request message 81 that has been executed. .

<< Execution of request processing >>
The function unit 71 on the reception side executes the process specified by the content interpretation unit 71b based on “data” obtained by interpreting the request message 81. At this time, the functional unit 71 on the receiving side verifies whether the data of the received request message 81 is correct data based on the “number of data” obtained by interpretation (function corresponding to the data verification unit). More specifically, it is determined whether or not the “data number” obtained by interpretation matches the number of data received as “data”. As a result, if they match, the request process is executed. If they do not match, it is determined that the data of the request message 81 is incorrect, and the request process is not executed.

  As a result, in the data processing function according to the present embodiment, the processing depending on the processing contents on the transmission / reception side and the communication purpose when performing the inter-process communication, the program group (callback function) of the functional unit 71 on the reception side 64), and the interprocess communication unit 73 does not include program codes or data that depend on the agreement on the transmission / reception side, so that the interprocess communication unit 73 is independent in the data processing of the image forming apparatus 100. The function units 71 and 72 on the transmission / reception side can be easily expanded. In other words, for example, it is possible to flexibly cope with a function having a relatively high frequency of function expansion, such as WS-Printer 21p and WS-Scanner 21s, and the function can be easily implemented.

<< Send response message >>
The function unit 71 on the reception side determines whether or not to send a response message in response to the request to the function unit 72 on the transmission side, and transmits the response message to the function unit 72 on the transmission side. The response message transmission determination performed at this time is determined by whether or not there is an execution result of the request processing. More specifically, the callback function 64 that realizes the function of the content interpretation unit 72b is executed by the registration procedure execution unit 77, and whether or not there is a return value (return value) from the callback function 64 (the value is Whether or not “NULL” is determined by the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side. As a result, if there is a return value, the transmission unit 74 transmits a response message to the function unit 71 on the reception side based on the return value. When there is no return value (when the value is “NULL”), it is determined that there is no need to respond.

  As a result, the data processing function according to the present embodiment can cope with both the transmission of the request message 81 that does not require a response to the request and the transmission of the request message 81 that requires a response. .

  The image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment is requested by the request message 81 from among the processes that can be executed by the image forming apparatus 100 according to the request message 81 by the configuration of each functional unit described above. The callback function 64 that realizes the function for specifying the processing to be processed is registered in advance in the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side, and is registered when the request message 81 is received by the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side. The callback function 64 is called and executed.

  As a result, in the image forming apparatus 100, processing that depends on an agreement such as processing contents on the transmission / reception side and communication purpose when performing inter-process communication is performed by a program group (including the callback function 64) of the functional unit 71 on the reception side. And the inter-process communication unit 73 does not include program code or data depending on the agreement on the transmission / reception side. Therefore, the inter-process communication unit 73 is highly independent in the data processing of the image forming apparatus 100. A “data processing function in the image forming apparatus 100” that can easily expand the function on the transmission / reception side is realized.

<Processing procedure>
A specific processing procedure of the “data processing function” according to the present embodiment described above will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9 show examples of basic data processing procedures on the transmission side and the reception side via inter-process communication.

<< Basic processing procedure >>
FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram showing an example (part 1) of the basic processing procedure of the data processing function in the image forming apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 illustrates a processing procedure when the reception-side functional unit 71 does not respond to a request from the transmission-side functional unit 72.

  The function unit 71 on the reception side calls the function registAPI () 61d of the inter-process communication unit 73 by the initialization unit 71a as preprocessing (step S101), and specifies a process requested by the request message 81. The function 64 is registered in the procedure registration unit 76 included in the interprocess communication unit 73 on the receiving side (step S102).

  When the callback function 64 is registered, the inter-process communication unit 73 on the reception side returns to the reception-side functional unit 71 that the registration is completed (step S103).

  Next, the function unit 71 on the receiving side calls the function GetMsg () 61c of the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side by the initialization unit 71a (step S104), and sends a request to the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side. The start of reception waiting for the message 81 is instructed.

  By the above processing procedure, the functional unit 71 on the receiving side becomes ready to receive the request message 81 from the transmitting side.

  Based on the data specification of the request message 81, the function unit 72 on the transmission side sends the “function name”, “number of data”, and “data” corresponding to the issued request message 81 to the transmission side based on the data specification of the request message 81. Is set as an argument of the function PutMsg () 61a of the inter-process communication unit 73, and then the function PutMsg 61a is called (step S201).

  The inter-process communication unit 73 on the transmission side transmits a request message 81 issued based on the value of the argument to the inter-process communication unit 73 on the reception side by the transmission unit 74 (step S202), indicating that the transmission is complete. It returns to the function unit 72 on the transmission side (step S203).

  The inter-process communication unit 73 on the reception side receives the request message 81 transmitted from the transmission side by the reception unit 75, and uses the callback function 64 registered in the procedure registration unit 76 as an argument. Then, the registration procedure execution unit 77 (call destination function) calls back, and the execution control is transferred to the function unit 71 on the reception side (step S204).

  In the receiving-side function unit 71 to which execution control has been transferred, the content interpreting unit 71b functions as a result of the callback function 64 being called, and interprets and interprets the request message 81 from the “function name” obtained by interpretation. A process corresponding to the request is specified and executed (step S205).

  When the corresponding process is completed, the content interpretation unit 71b returns a message indicating that the process has been completed to the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side (step S206).

  FIG. 9 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example (part 2) of the basic processing procedure of the data processing function in the image forming apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 illustrates a processing procedure when the reception-side functional unit 71 responds to a request from the transmission-side functional unit 72.

  The processing procedure different between FIG. 9 and FIG. 8 is processing after step S301 in which the transmission-side functional unit 72 transmits the request message 81 to the reception-side functional unit 71. Therefore, the processing procedure before step S301 shown in FIG. 9 is not described with reference to FIG.

  Based on the data specification of the request message 81, the function unit 72 on the transmission side sends the “function name”, “number of data”, and “data” corresponding to the issued request message 81 to the transmission side based on the data specification of the request message 81. Is set as an argument of the function SendReceive () 61b of the inter-process communication unit 73, and then the function SendReceive () 61b is called (step S301).

  The inter-process communication unit 73 on the transmission side transmits the request message 81 issued based on the argument value by the transmission unit 74 to the inter-process communication unit 73 on the reception side (step S302).

  The inter-process communication unit 73 on the reception side receives the request message 81 transmitted from the transmission side by the reception unit 75, and uses the callback function 64 registered in the procedure registration unit 76 as an argument. Then, the registration procedure execution unit 77 calls back to shift the execution control to the function unit 71 on the receiving side (step S303).

  In the receiving-side function unit 71 to which execution control has been transferred, the content interpreting unit 71b functions as a result of the callback function 64 being called, and interprets and interprets the request message 81 from the “function name” obtained by interpretation. A process corresponding to the request is specified and executed (step S304).

  When the response processing is completed, the content interpretation unit 71b returns the return value of the callback function 64 to the interprocess communication unit 73 on the receiving side (step S305).

  The inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side determines the presence or absence of a response message based on the return value that is the processing result (step S306), and if the response is determined to be necessary from the determination result, the transmission unit 64 performs the processing result. The response message issued based on the above is transmitted to the function unit 71 on the transmission side (step S307).

  The inter-process communication unit 73 on the transmission side transfers the response message received by the reception unit 75 to the functional unit 71 on the reception side (step S308).

  As described above, the data processing program according to the present embodiment is a process that can be executed by the image forming apparatus 100 according to the request message 81 registered in advance in the image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment. Therefore, the callback function 64 for specifying the processing requested by the request message 81 and executing the processing can be functioned to be executed when the request message 81 is received by the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side.

<< Processing Procedure in WS-MFP Module Group 20 >>
10 and 11 show an example of a data processing procedure between the DFM module 22 and the WS-Printer 21p via interprocess communication.

  FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing an example (part 1) of the processing procedure of the data processing function of the WS-MFP module group 20 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 illustrates a processing procedure when the DFM module 22 on the receiving side does not respond to a request from the WS-Printer 21p on the transmitting side.

  As a pre-process, the DFM module 22 on the receiving side calls the function registAPI () 61d of the inter-process communication unit 73 by the initialization unit 71a (step S401), and specifies the processing requested by the request message 81. The function 64 is registered in the procedure registration unit 76 of the receiving side IMC 51 (step S402).

  When the callback function 64 is registered, the receiving-side IMC 51 returns to the receiving-side functional unit 71 that the registration has been completed (step S403).

  Next, the DFM module 22 on the receiving side calls the function GetMsg () 61c of the IMC 51 on the receiving side by the initialization unit 71a (step S404), and starts the reception waiting for the request message 81 to the IMC 51 on the receiving side. Instruct.

  With the above processing procedure, the DFM module 22 on the receiving side becomes ready to receive the request message 81 from the transmitting side.

  The WS-Printer 21p on the transmitting side uses the message setting unit 72a based on the data specification of the request message 81 to issue “function name = DCP2DFM_Register”, “data” corresponding to the “provided service registration to DFM module 22” request message. After setting “number = 8” and “data = (InstanceID), (EPR)... (Device Category)” as arguments of the function PutMsg () 61 a of the inter-process communication unit 73, the function PutMsg 61 a is called ( Step S501).

  The transmitting-side IMC 51 transmits the request message 81 issued based on the argument value to the receiving-side IMC 51 by the transmitting unit 74 (step S502), and returns to the transmitting-side functional unit 72 that the transmission is completed. (Step S503).

  The IMC 51 on the receiving side receives the request message 81 transmitted from the transmitting side by the receiving unit 75, executes the registration procedure using the callback function 64 registered in the procedure registration unit 76 and the received request message 81 as an argument. Call back is performed by the unit 77, and execution control is transferred to the function unit 71 on the receiving side (step S504).

  In the receiving-side function unit 71 to which execution control has been transferred, the content interpreting unit 71b functions as a result of the callback function 64 being called, and interprets and interprets the request message 81 from the “function name” obtained by interpretation. A process corresponding to the “register service provided to DFM module 22” request is specified (message dispatch process) (step S505). Next, the specified (dispatched) DCP registration process is executed (step S506).

  When the content interpretation unit 71b finishes the corresponding process, the receiving-side DFM module 22 multicasts the automatic detection command “Hello” to the external device such as the client terminal by UDP (step S507), and the process is completed. A message to the effect is returned to the receiving side IMC 51 (step S508).

  FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing an example (part 2) of the processing procedure of the data processing function of the WS-MFP module group 20 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 11 illustrates a processing procedure when the DFM module 22 on the receiving side responds to a request from the WS-Printer 21p on the transmitting side.

  The processing procedure different between FIG. 9 and FIG. 8 is processing after step S301 in which the transmission-side functional unit 72 transmits the request message 81 to the reception-side functional unit 71. Therefore, the processing procedure before step S301 shown in FIG. 9 is not described with reference to FIG.

  The WS-Printer 21p on the transmission side uses the message setting unit 72a to generate “function name = DCP2DFM_SetMetadata”, “number of data = 5” in accordance with the “acquire IP address” request message issued based on the data specification of the request message 81. , And “Data = (InstanceID), (Dialect)... (Metadata)” are set as arguments of the function PutMsg () 61a of the inter-process communication unit 73, and then the function PutMsg 61a is called (step S601).

  The sending-side IMC 51 sends the request message 81 issued based on the argument value to the receiving-side IMC 51 by the sending unit 74 (step S602).

  The IMC 51 on the receiving side receives the request message 81 transmitted from the transmitting side by the receiving unit 75, executes the registration procedure using the callback function 64 registered in the procedure registration unit 76 and the received request message 81 as an argument. Call back is performed by the unit 77, and execution control is transferred to the function unit 71 on the receiving side (step S603).

  In the receiving-side function unit 71 to which execution control has been transferred, the content interpreting unit 71b functions as a result of the callback function 64 being called, and interprets and interprets the request message 81 from the “function name” obtained by interpretation. The process corresponding to the “acquire IP address” request is specified (message dispatch process) (step S604). Next, the specified (dispatched) IP address acquisition process is executed (step S605).

  When the content interpreter 71b completes the corresponding process, the receiving-side DFM module 22 returns the return value (IP address) of the callback function 64 to the receiving-side IMC 51 (step S606).

  The inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side determines the presence / absence of a response message based on the return value that is the processing result (step S607), and if the response is determined to be necessary from the determination result, the transmission unit 64 determines the processing result. The response message issued based on the above is transmitted to the function unit 71 on the transmission side (step S608).

  The IMC 51 on the transmission side transfers the response message received by the reception unit 75 to the functional unit 71 on the reception side (step S609).

<Summary>
As described above, according to the first embodiment of the present invention, the image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment includes the inter-process communication unit 73 and the function units 71 and 72 on the transmission / reception side as separate modules. In response to a request message 81 for requesting a predetermined process, a callback function 64 for specifying a process requested by the request message 81 from the processes executable by the image forming apparatus 100 and executing the process is set on the receiving side. The function unit 71 has this function 64 registered in advance in the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side, and when the request message 81 is received by the inter-process communication unit 73 on the receiving side, the registered function 64 is Call back.

  As a result, the image forming apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment integrates the processing depending on the processing contents on the transmission / reception side and the communication purpose when performing the inter-process communication into the function on the reception side, and the inter-process communication unit 73 does not include program code or data depending on the agreement on the transmission / reception side, and therefore, in the data processing in the image forming apparatus 100, the inter-process communication unit 73 is highly independent, and the functions on the transmission / reception side can be easily performed. A “data processing function” that can be extended can be provided.

  So far, the present invention has been described based on the first embodiment, but the “data processing function” of the image forming apparatus 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention is the processing procedure shown in FIGS. The data processing program according to the present embodiment including the above can be realized by the CPU 13c disposed in the controller 13 included in the image forming apparatus 100. Therefore, the data processing program included in the image forming apparatus 100 according to each embodiment of the present invention can be stored in the storage medium 12b that can be read by the image forming apparatus 100.

  A data processing program according to each embodiment is stored in a recording medium 12b such as a floppy (registered trademark) disk, a CD (Compact Disc), a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), and the like, and can read the storage medium 12b. The image forming apparatus 100 can be installed from the recording medium 12b via the storage medium I / F 12 having the apparatus 12a. Since the image forming apparatus 100 includes the data communication I / F 14 having the interface device 14a, the data communication program can be downloaded and installed using an electric communication line such as the Internet.

  Finally, the present invention is not limited to the requirements shown here, such as combinations of other elements with the shapes listed in the above embodiments. With respect to these points, the present invention can be changed within a range that does not detract from the gist of the present invention, and can be appropriately determined according to the application form.

1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a software configuration of the image forming apparatus according to the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention. FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the software structure of NCS which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the structure of the interprocess communication inside WS-MFP module group which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the software structure of IMC which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of a data processing function in the image forming apparatus according to the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention. FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the data specification of the request message which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example (part 1) of a basic processing procedure of a data processing function in the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 6 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example (part 2) of a basic processing procedure of a data processing function in the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. It is a sequence diagram showing an example (part 1) of the processing procedure of the data processing function of the WS-MFP module group according to the first embodiment of the present invention. It is a sequence diagram showing an example (part 2) of the processing procedure of the data processing function of the WS-MFP module group according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

11 Operation Panel 11a Input Device 11b Display Device 12 Storage Media I / F
12a drive device 12b recording medium 13 controller 13a ROM
13b RAM
13c CPU
14 Data communication I / F
14a interface device 15 scanner 15a image reading device 16 plotter 16a printing device 17 HDD
20 WS-MFP module group 21p WS-Printer
21s WS-Scanner
22 DFM module 31 WS-Discovery
32 WS-Transfer
33 WS-MetadataExchange
34 WSD-Manager
41p PrinterDCP
41s Scanner DCP
42 WS-Eventing
51 IMC
61 IMCI / F Layer 62 API Internal Processing Layer 63 Transmission / Reception Processing Execution Layer 64 Callback Function (Software Component Called from Storage Location Information)
71 Functional part on the receiving side (eg DFM module)
71a Initialization unit 71b Content interpretation unit (dispatcher)
72 Transmission-side functional unit (for example, WS-Printer, WS-Scanner, etc.)
72a Function A (eg WS-Printer)
72b Function B (eg WS-Scanner)
72m Message setting unit 73 Inter-process communication unit (for example, IMC)
74 Transmission Unit 75 Reception Unit 76 Procedure Registration Unit 77 Registration Procedure Execution Unit 81 Request Message 100 Image Forming Apparatus 101 Hardware Resource 102 Engine I / F
103 API
110 Software group 111 Printer application 112 Copy application 113 Fax application 114 Scanner application 115 Net file application 116 Process inspection application 117 Distribution application 120 Platform 121 OS
122 SCS
123 SRM
124 ECS
125 MCS
126 OCS
127 FCS
128 NCS
129 IMH
130 Application 140 Starter 150 Control Service

Claims (9)

An image forming apparatus comprising: a first process in which a first function operates; and a second process in which a second function for which execution of a predetermined process is requested from the first process operates.
A software component that identifies a process requested by the request message from among processes executable by the image forming apparatus in response to the request message requesting the predetermined process transmitted from the first process. Holding means for holding storage location information;
When the request message transmitted from the first process is received by the second process, specified by the software component executed based on the storage location information held by the holding unit; An image forming apparatus comprising: an execution unit that executes processing requested by the request message in the second process. The image forming apparatus includes:
Comprising a communication control interface common to the first function and the second function, and having a communication control means for transmitting and receiving data between processes;
The communication control means includes
The response message corresponding to the request is transmitted to the first process based on an execution result of the predetermined process requested by the request message and executed in the second process. The image forming apparatus according to 1. The communication control means includes
Transmission instruction means for instructing transmission of the request message;
Response reception instruction means for instructing transmission of the request message and waiting for reception of the response message in response to the request;
Request waiting instruction means for instructing reception waiting of the request message;
The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a storage location information setting instruction unit that instructs setting of storage location information of the software component. The request message is
A function name indicating processing executed by the request message;
Parameter values used when performing the process;
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus includes a number of parameters indicating the number of parameter values. The software component is
5. The image according to claim 1, wherein a process requested by the request message is specified based on the function name of the request message received in the second process. 6. Forming equipment. The execution means includes
6. The process requested by the request message specified by the software component based on the parameter value of the request message received in the second process. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1. The image forming apparatus includes:
Data verification for determining whether the number of parameter values of the request message received in the second process matches the number of parameters of the request message and verifying the data of the received request message The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a unit. A first process in which a first function operates, a second process in which a second function for which execution of a predetermined process is requested from the first process operates, and a transmission from the first process. And holding storage location information of software components for identifying the process requested by the request message from among the processes executable by the image forming apparatus in response to the request message requesting the predetermined process And a data processing method in the image forming apparatus,
When the request message transmitted from the first process is received by the second process, the software component is executed based on the storage location information held by the holding unit, and the software component A data processing method in an image forming apparatus, characterized in that a process requested by the request message is specified by execution, and the specified process is executed in the second process. A first process in which a first function operates, a second process in which a second function for requesting predetermined processing to the first process operates, and a first process transmitted from the first process. A holding unit that holds storage location information of a software component that identifies a process requested by the request message from among processes that can be executed by the image forming apparatus in response to the request message that requests the predetermined process A data processing program in the image forming apparatus,
On the computer,
When the request message transmitted from the first process is received by the second process, the software component is executed based on the storage location information held by the holding unit, and the software component A data processing program in the image forming apparatus that, by execution, causes a process requested by the request message to be specified, and causes the specified process to be executed in the second process.

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