JP5287633B2 - Control program update device and program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a control program update device and a program.

  There is an information processing system that acquires an update program for updating a control program such as firmware from a server and updates the control program. For example, Patent Document 1 below describes a system that reads an update program of a control program and rewrites the control program while executing the control program to be updated. In this system, it is possible to specify the restart timing for validating the rewritten control program.

JP 2003-330655 A

  One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a control program updating apparatus and program capable of shortening a period during which the system cannot be used by updating the control program.

  In order to achieve the above object, the invention of the control program update device according to claim 1 is characterized in that one or a plurality of processing units that perform processing according to each control program, and each control program of the one or more processing units. , Storage means for acquiring an update program for updating at least one control program among the one or more processing sections, and operation of the processing section to be updated by the update program acquired by the acquisition means And a determination unit for determining a timing for updating the control program of the processing unit, and an update for updating the control program stored in the storage unit by the update program according to the timing determined by the determination unit Means.

  Further, the invention according to claim 2 is the control program update device according to claim 1, wherein, when the processing unit to be updated is in a non-use state, the determination unit executes a control program for the processing unit. It is determined that it is time to update.

  The invention according to claim 3 is the control program update device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the determination unit is configured to switch the update target processing unit to a power saving state or in a power saving state. , It is determined that it is time to update the control program of the processing unit.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the control program update device according to any one of the first to third aspects, the determination means stores a control program for at least some of the plurality of processing units. When there is a dependency relationship in the update program to be updated, it is determined when to update the control program in common to all processing units having the dependency relationship, and the update unit has all the dependency relationships in the update program. The control program of each processing unit is updated according to the timing determined in common for the processing units.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer including one or more processing units that perform processing according to each control program, and a storage unit that stores each control program of the one or more processing units. , Based on the operation of an acquisition unit that acquires an update program that updates at least one control program among the one or more processing units, and an operation of a processing unit that is an update target acquired by the update program acquired by the acquisition unit. Determining means for determining when to update the control program of the unit, and functioning as an updating means for updating the control program stored in the storage unit by the update program according to the timing determined by the determining means It is a program.

  According to the first and fifth aspects of the present invention, the period during which the system cannot be used due to the update of the control program can be shortened as compared with the case where the entire system needs to be restarted for the update of the control program.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, the update of the control program of the processing unit can be completed while the processing unit is not used.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, the update of the control program of the processing unit can be completed while the processing unit is paused.

  According to the invention described in claim 4, a plurality of update programs having a dependency relationship can be updated at the same timing.

1 is a system configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment. It is a flowchart of the process in which a processing module updates a control program to a non-use state. It is a flowchart of the process which updates a control program when a processing module transfers to a power saving state. It is a flowchart of the process which updates a control program while a processing module is in a power saving state. It is a flowchart of the update process of a control program when there is a dependency relationship among the control programs of a plurality of processing modules.

  DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments (hereinafter referred to as embodiments) for carrying out the invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the present embodiment, processing for updating a control program (firmware) of the image forming apparatus 10 will be described using an example in which a control program updating apparatus is applied to the image forming apparatus 10.

  FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming apparatus 10 includes a control unit 12, a storage unit 14, a communication unit 16, an image output unit 18, an image input unit 20, a UI control unit 22, a FAX processing unit 24, and a paper feed control unit. 26, a post-processing unit 28, and a nonvolatile memory 30.

  The processing performed by the image forming apparatus 10 is information that can be read by the image forming apparatus 10, which is a computer including a control unit such as a CPU, a storage unit such as a memory, an input / output unit that transmits and receives data to and from an external device It may be realized by reading and executing a program stored in a storage medium. The program may be supplied to the image forming apparatus 10 as a computer by an information storage medium, or may be supplied via a data communication unit such as the Internet.

  The control unit 12 includes a central processing unit (CPU) and controls each unit of the image forming apparatus 10 according to a control program such as an operating system. For example, the control unit 12 executes processing on each of the image output unit 18, the image input unit 20, the UI control unit 22, the FAX processing unit 24, the paper feed control unit 26, and the subsequent processing unit 28 provided in the image forming apparatus 10. In addition, when each unit does not perform processing for a certain period of time, power supply to each unit is stopped or reduced to switch to a power saving state, or processing for returning each unit from the power saving state is performed.

  The storage unit 14 may include a volatile memory such as a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk device, and the like. The storage unit 14 functions as a work memory of the control unit 12 and also downloads data downloaded to the image forming apparatus 10. May be used for the purpose of storing the

  The communication unit 16 includes a communication interface, and performs data communication with the information processing apparatus 40 connected via the communication interface. For example, the communication unit 16 may receive an update program for updating the control program of the image forming apparatus 10 from the information processing apparatus 40.

  The image output unit 18 is a processing module that executes a process of outputting an image from the image forming apparatus 10. For example, the image output unit 18 may be a print engine that performs an image forming process based on image data.

  The image input unit 20 is a processing module that executes a process of inputting an image to the image forming apparatus 10. For example, the image input unit 20 may be a scanner that obtains image data by scanning a paper document.

  The UI control unit 22 is a processing module that controls a user interface (UI) with a user who uses the image forming apparatus 10. For example, the UI control unit 22 may be realized by a touch panel and a control circuit that controls the touch panel. .

  The FAX processing unit 24 is a processing module that executes FAX transmission / reception processing. For example, the FAX processing unit 24 may perform FAX transmission based on the image data input by the image input unit 20 during FAX transmission, and when the FAX is received, the image output unit 18 may perform image transmission based on the received FAX data. The formation may be performed.

  The paper feed control unit 26 controls processing for feeding printing paper from one or more printing paper trays provided in the image forming apparatus 10 to the image output unit 18.

  The post-processing unit 28 performs post-processing of the printing paper output as a result of processing by the image output unit 18.

  A plurality of processing modules such as an image output unit 18, an image input unit 20, a UI control unit 22, a FAX processing unit 24, a paper feed control unit 26, and a subsequent processing unit 28 provided in the image forming apparatus 10 correspond to each. The control program (firmware) stored in the provided non-volatile memory 30 is read, and processing is performed according to the read control program. The nonvolatile memory 30 may include an initial program that is read when the initial program loader (IPL) is started in addition to the control program. In this case, each processing module first reads the IPL, inquires about the operation mode (normal mode or update mode) to be activated in accordance with the IPL, and operates according to the obtained operation mode. As good as

  Hereinafter, control programs for a plurality of processing modules such as the image output unit 18, the image input unit 20, the UI control unit 22, the FAX processing unit 24, the paper feed control unit 26, and the subsequent processing unit 28 provided in the image forming apparatus 10. Processing for updating (firmware) will be described. It is assumed that an update program for updating each control program is held in the information processing apparatus 40, and the image forming apparatus 10 downloads the update program from the information processing apparatus 40 and stores it in the storage unit 14. Then, the image forming apparatus 10 determines the update timing of the control program based on the operation of the processing module updated by the downloaded update program, and updates the control program at the determined update timing. The update timing determination process will be specifically described below.

  In the present embodiment, when the processing module to be updated provided in the image forming apparatus 10 is in a non-use state (idle state) or a power saving state (power saving state), the control program for the processing module is updated. To do.

  A processing module being in a non-use state indicates a state in which a state in which no processing request is made to the processing module is continuing, and in the present embodiment, the control unit 12 causes the elapsed time of each processing module to be in a non-use state. It is good to manage.

  The processing module is in the power saving state when the processing request to a part or all of the processing modules of the image forming apparatus 10 is not in a certain period of time and the power supply to the processing module having no processing request is stopped or reduced. It is shown. Note that power supply to the control unit 12 may be continued even in the power saving state.

  Hereinafter, processing for updating the control program when the processing module is not used will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the image forming apparatus 10 acquires an update program for the control program (firmware) from the information processing apparatus 40 (S101), and specifies a processing module to be updated (S102). When the identified processing module is in a non-use state (S103: Y), the image forming apparatus 10 determines that the non-use state has continued for a certain time (S104: Y). Processing for updating the control program of the identified processing module is started (S105).

  The image forming apparatus 10 transfers the update program to the processing module to be updated (S106), and rewrites the control program stored in the nonvolatile memory 30 by the transferred update program (S107). Then, the image forming apparatus 10 causes the processing module to execute an initialization process based on an initial program such as IPL (S108), causes the processing module to read the rewritten update program, and completes the update of the control program.

  Next, processing for updating the control program when the processing module of the image forming apparatus 10 shifts to the power saving state will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the image forming apparatus 10 acquires an update program for the control program (firmware) from the information processing apparatus 40 (S201), and specifies a processing module to be updated (S202). Then, the image forming apparatus 10 determines whether or not the specified processing module shifts to the power saving state (S203). If it is determined to shift to the power saving state (S203: Y), the specified processing is performed. A process of updating the module control program is started (S204).

  The image forming apparatus 10 transfers the update program to the processing module to be updated (S205), rewrites the control program stored in the nonvolatile memory 30 with the transferred update program (S206), and then updates the processing module to be updated. Is shifted to the power saving state (S207). When the processing module returns from the power saving state (S208), the image forming apparatus 10 causes the processing module to execute an initialization process based on an initial program such as IPL (S209), and updates the rewritten update program to the processing module. Read it. In this way, the image forming apparatus 10 updates the control program at the time of transition to the power saving state, and when the image forming apparatus 10 recovers from the power saving state and starts up, the processing module operates based on the updated control program. .

  Next, processing for updating the control program while the processing module of the image forming apparatus 10 is in the power saving state will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the image forming apparatus 10 acquires an update program for a control program (firmware) from the information processing apparatus 40 (S301), and specifies a processing module to be updated (S302). When the specified processing module is in the power saving state (S303: Y), the image forming apparatus 10 determines that the power saving state has continued for a certain time (S304: Y). The process of updating the control program of the processed module is started (S305).

  The image forming apparatus 10 starts up the processing module from the power saving state (S306), transfers the update program to the processing module to be updated (S307), and updates the control program stored in the nonvolatile memory 30 with the update program. After rewriting (S308), the processing module to be updated is returned to the power saving state (S309). When the processing module returns from the power saving state (S310), the image forming apparatus 10 causes the processing module to execute initialization processing based on an initial program such as IPL (S311), and updates the update program rewritten to the processing module. Read it. In this way, the image forming apparatus 10 updates the control program during the power saving state, and when the image forming apparatus 10 returns from the power saving state and starts up, the processing module operates based on the updated control program. .

  In the above embodiment, the control unit 12 compares the current version of the control program (firmware) of each processing module with the version of the update program, and determines whether the update program is a newer version. It is also possible to determine the processing module to be updated. The control unit 12 may transfer the update program to the processing module when the update version is different from the current version when receiving the update program transfer request from the processing module. Alternatively, the current version information of the control program may be held in the image forming apparatus 10, and the update program with a difference may be selectively downloaded when the update program is downloaded from the information processing apparatus 40.

  In addition, when updating a control program for a processing module, if there is a dependency that requires an update of the control program for another processing module, all of the processing modules with such a dependency satisfy the update timing. In such a case, the control program may be updated. Hereinafter, with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 6, a control program update process in the case where there is a dependency relationship among the control programs of a plurality of processing modules will be described.

  As illustrated in FIG. 5, the image forming apparatus 10 acquires an update program for the control program (firmware) from the information processing apparatus 40 (S501), and determines a processing module to be updated and a processing module having a dependency relationship with the update. Specify (S502). Then, the image forming apparatus 10 determines whether or not all the specified processing modules have reached the update timing (S503), and when determining that all have reached the update timing (S503: Y), the above-described specification is performed. The processing for updating the control programs of all the processing modules is started (S504).

  The image forming apparatus 10 transfers an update program corresponding to each processing module to each processing module (S505), and rewrites the control program stored in the nonvolatile memory 30 with the transferred update program (S506). Then, the image forming apparatus 10 causes each processing module to execute initialization processing based on an initial program such as IPL (S507), and causes the processing module to read the rewritten update program.

  In the image forming apparatus 10 described above, when the control program of the processing module is updated, the entire system does not need to be restarted. The period during which the use of the forming apparatus 10 is restricted is shortened.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, in each of the above embodiments, each processing module reads and executes a control program from the nonvolatile memory 30, but each processing module includes a RAM, The control program may be read from the nonvolatile memory 30 into the RAM and executed.

  The present invention is not limited to the image forming apparatus 10 and may be applied to all computer systems including one or a plurality of processing modules.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Image forming apparatus, 12 Control part, 14 Storage part, 16 Communication part, 18 Image output part, 20 Image input part, 22 UI control part, 24 FAX process part, 26 Paper feed control part, 28 Subsequent process part, 30 Non-volatile Memory, 40 information processing device.

Claims (2)

One or a plurality of processing units that perform processing according to each control program;
A storage unit storing each control program of the one or more processing units;
Obtaining means for obtaining an update program for updating at least one control program of the one or more processing units;
After the update has been acquired by the acquisition unit, for each of the processing units of the update target by the update, or non-use state where the processor receives no processing request has been continued for a certain time, or to the processing unit Determining means for determining that it is time to update the control program of the processing unit when the power supply state is in a power saving state in which the power supply is stopped or reduced ;
When there is a processing unit having an update dependency among the processing units to be updated by the update program acquired by the acquisition unit, the timing for updating the control program by the determination unit for all the processing units having the dependency when but it is determined to have arrived, and updating means for updating the control program of each processing unit of the update target stored in the storage unit by the update,
Initializing means for causing each processing unit to be updated to execute initialization processing based on the control program updated by the updating means, respectively . A computer including one or more processing units that perform processing according to each control program, and a storage unit that stores the control program of each of the one or more processing units,
Obtaining means for obtaining an update program for updating at least one control program of the one or more processing units;
After the update has been acquired by the acquisition unit, for each of the processing units of the update target by the update, or non-use state where the processor receives no processing request has been continued for a certain time, or to the processing unit Determining means for determining that it is time to update the control program of the processing unit when the power supply state is in a power saving state in which the power supply is stopped or reduced ;
When there is a processing unit having an update dependency among the processing units to be updated by the update program acquired by the acquisition unit, the timing for updating the control program by the determination unit for all the processing units having the dependency when but it is determined to have arrived, and updating means for updating the control program of each processing unit of the update target stored in the storage unit by the update,
A program for causing each processing unit to be updated to function as an initialization unit that causes an initialization process based on a control program updated by the updating unit to be executed .

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