JPH10124405A - Data processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To surely protect the necessary data despite the use of an auxiliary battery having small capacity without protecting the contents, of a volatile memory by a backup battery when a main power supply is interrupted by saving immediately only an optional type of data among those stored in the volatile memory against occurrence of a power interruption. SOLUTION: A POS master device and the terminal equipments operate by the power supplied from an auxiliary battery 15. The POS master device gives a data transmission request to every terminal equipment via an in-line control part 10. Then every terminal equipment sends the contents of only an optional sales totalizer that is previously designated among various sales totalizers contained in a RAM 2 to the POS master device. The POS master device collects the received data and sends them to a host computer for saving via a modem 11.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a data processing device which performs predetermined data processing by switching to an auxiliary power supply when a main power supply fails.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, in a POS (Point of Sales) system constructed in a large store such as a department store or a supermarket, for example, at the end of a business day, data transmission is manually performed from each terminal device. When instructed, various kinds of sales data are transmitted to a data collection device (store controller or host computer) and stored and held in a hard disk or the like of the data collection device. In this case, when the AC power supply fails, the power supply is switched to the backup battery to retain the contents of the volatile memory on the terminal device side, and after the AC power supply is restored, various sales data in the volatile memory are transmitted to the data collection device. I am trying to do it.

[0003]

Conventionally, a backup battery for backing up the entire terminal device using a backup battery or a backup device for backing up only the volatile memory is known. However, it is very difficult to back up the entire device. Large capacity batteries were needed. Volatile memory is composed of a DRAM that stores a large amount of various data such as sales data by department, sales data by product, sales data by person in charge, etc. Even a battery that backs up a battery requires a large-capacity battery. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to prevent the contents of a volatile memory from being protected by a backup battery at the time of a power failure of a main power supply, and immediately save any type of data among data stored in the volatile memory immediately after a power failure occurs. Thus, even if an auxiliary battery having a small capacity is used, necessary data can be surely protected. Another object of the present invention is to prevent the contents of the volatile memory from being protected by a backup battery at the time of a power failure of the main power supply on the terminal device side. By switching the power supply from the auxiliary power supply to only the device, it is possible to automatically transmit data from the terminal device to the data collection device when a power failure occurs even if an auxiliary battery with a small capacity is used.

[0004]

The means of the present invention are as follows. According to a first aspect of the present invention, in a data processing device provided with an auxiliary power supply in addition to a main power supply, volatile data storage means for storing a plurality of types of data, and the volatile data storage means are stored in the volatile data storage means. A data type storage unit for storing an arbitrary type of data; a non-volatile data storage unit for storing and holding data; a detection unit for detecting occurrence of a power failure of a main power supply; Power supply switching means for switching to power supply from an auxiliary power supply when detected, and storing in the volatile data storage means in a state where power is supplied from the auxiliary power supply when the occurrence of a power failure is detected by the detection means. Storage control means for transferring data corresponding to the type stored in the data type storage means to the non-volatile data storage means and storing and holding the same It is intended to include a.
The storage control means transfers the data in the volatile data storage means to the non-volatile data storage means until a predetermined time elapses after the occurrence of the power failure is detected by the detection means, and stores and holds the data. You may make it do. According to the first aspect of the present invention, when a power failure of the main power supply such as the AC power supply occurs, the power supply is switched to the power supply from the auxiliary power supply by the power supply switching unit. Then, in a state where the occurrence of a power failure is detected by the detection means and the power is supplied from the auxiliary power supply, the storage control means, among the data stored in the volatile data storage means, The data corresponding to the stored type is transferred to the non-volatile data storage means and stored. Therefore, the content of the volatile memory is not protected by the backup battery at the time of the power failure of the main power supply, and immediately after a power failure occurs, only the arbitrary type of data stored in the volatile memory is evacuated, thereby reducing the capacity. Necessary data can be surely protected even by using an auxiliary battery having a small number of batteries.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a data processing apparatus comprising: a plurality of terminal devices provided with an auxiliary power supply in addition to a main power supply; and a data collection device for collecting data transmitted from each terminal device. , Each terminal device is provided with volatile data storage means, transmission means for transmitting data in the data storage means to the data collection device, detection means for detecting occurrence of power failure of the main power supply, and power failure by the detection means. Power supply switching means for supplying power from an auxiliary power supply only to the data storage means and the data transmission means when the occurrence is detected, and the occurrence of a power failure is detected by the detection means and In a state where power is supplied to the data storage unit and the data transmission unit, the data transmission unit transmits data in the data storage unit to the data collection device. It is. According to the invention described in claim 3, when a power failure of the main power supply occurs on the terminal device side,
The power supply switching means switches the power supply from the auxiliary power supply to only the volatile data storage means and the data storage means. Then, the data transmission unit transmits the data in the data storage unit to the data collection device. Therefore, the terminal device does not protect the contents of the volatile memory with a backup battery at the time of the power failure of the main power supply, and if a power failure occurs, assists only the devices necessary for transmitting data from the terminal device to the data collection device By switching to the power supply from the power supply, data can be automatically transmitted from the terminal device to the data collection device when a power failure occurs even if an auxiliary battery with a small capacity is used.

[0006]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram showing a POS system. This POS system is composed of a plurality of POS terminal devices T1, T2, T3,... And a POS master device MT connected via a private line on the premises, and the POS master device MT is connected to a host computer HT at the headquarters via a public telephone line. That are connected via At the end of the business day, the sales data from each of the POS terminal devices T1, T2, T3,.
When transmitted to the OS master device MT, the POS master device M
T collects this and transmits the collected data to the host computer HT. The host computer HT collects and manages sales data transmitted from each store.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a main configuration of the POS master device MT. The CPU 1 is a central processing unit that controls the overall operation of the POS master device according to various programs stored in a program memory in the RAM 2. The storage medium 3 includes a magnetic / optical storage medium such as a floppy disk, an optical disk, and a RAM card, which can be removably mounted, and a semiconductor memory, and stores programs and data. In a state where the storage medium 3 is mounted on the apparatus main body via the storage control unit 4, programs and data in the storage medium 3 are stored in the CPU.
1 and stored in the hard disk 5. The hard disk 5 stores an operating system, various application programs, data files, character font data, and the like. The CPU 1 receives programs and data from other devices via a communication line or the like. Is stored in the hard disk 5. Further, an input unit 6, a display unit 7, a printing unit 8, a drawer 9, an in-line control unit 10, a modem 11 and the like are connected to the CPU 1 as peripheral devices, and the CPU 1 controls the operations thereof.

The input unit 6 has a keyboard and a pointing device, and various keys normally provided are arranged on the keyboard. That is, although not shown,
Numeric keypad, department key, P to input amount data, quantity, etc.
In addition to LU (price look up) key, cash / deposit key, etc., registration mode, setting mode, inspection mode,
A mode switch for switching between a settlement mode and the like is provided. The sales data input from the input unit 6 is CP
It is taken in by U1, displayed on the display unit 7, output on a receipt / journal set in the double printing unit 8, and further printed on the sales totalizer in the RAM 2 (not shown in FIG. 1). Registered in.

The power failure detection unit 12 constantly monitors the output voltage from the AC power supply unit 13. When the voltage drops when a power failure occurs, the power failure detection unit 12 notifies the CPU 1 of the power failure occurrence and sends a power supply switching signal to the power control unit 14. give. Power control unit 1
Reference numeral 4 denotes switching to power supply from an auxiliary battery (for example, a secondary battery) 15 in accordance with a switching signal from the power failure detection unit 12 when an AC power failure occurs. The power from the auxiliary battery 15 is supplied only to the minimum number of devices required for processing. In this case, in addition to the display unit 7 and the printing unit 8, the power supply to the storage control unit 4, the input unit 6, and the drawer 9 is stopped.
The power from the auxiliary battery 15 is supplied to other devices. Here, when the CPU 1 receives the notification of the occurrence of the power failure from the power failure detecting unit 12,
A process of collecting sales data transmitted from the S terminal devices T1, T2,... And transmitting the collected data to the host computer HT via the modem 11 is executed. In this case, the user instructs the execution in advance. The terminal data collection processing by in-line communication and the data transmission processing to the host by modem communication are performed on condition that the setting is performed. In addition, as the above setting contents,
The user can arbitrarily select and specify to execute only in-line communication, only modem communication, or both in-line communication and modem communication. Further, when starting the above-described terminal data collection processing and data transmission processing to the host when a power failure occurs, the CPU 1 operates the timer 16 and executes the processing for a predetermined time until the time is up. . If the time is up before the processing is completed, the data collected from each of the POS terminal devices T1, T2,... And the data to be transmitted to the host computer HT are written to the hard disk 5 or the flash memory 17 and saved. FIG. 2 shows the main configuration of the POS master device MT. Since each of the POS terminal devices T1, T2,... Has substantially the same configuration as the POS master device MT, the configuration is omitted. The POS terminal devices T1, T2
... Are different from each other in that the modem 11 is not provided.
The following description is made using the same reference numerals as those of the components on the T side.

FIG. 3 shows various sales totalizers provided in the RAM 2.
1. Total sales unit by section 2-2, Sales total unit by responsible person 2-
3. A time-based sales totalizer 2-4 is provided. Each sales totalizer stores sales data for each category, and sets an instruction flag for instructing execution of processing when an AC power failure occurs. Here, two types of instruction flags are set in association with the respective totalizers, and the POS terminal devices T1.
The instruction flag indicating “do not send” indicates whether or not to send the contents of the corresponding type of sales totalizer to the POS master device MT, and indicates whether or not the POS master device MT sends the collected data to the host computer HT. ing. Also,
The instruction flag indicating "write / not write" is used to write data in order to save data to its own flash memory 17 under certain conditions regardless of the POS terminal device T1... And the POS master device MT. Indicates whether to perform. These instruction flags are arbitrarily set by the user. In this case, since the content of the divisional total sales unit 2-2 is higher in importance than other sales total units, the instruction flag corresponding thereto is set. “Send” and “write” are set in the flags, and “do not send” and “do not write” are set in the instruction flags corresponding to the other sales totalizers, respectively.

FIG. 4 shows the RAM 2 on the POS master device MT side.
5 shows a processing time table 2-5 provided in the table.
The processing time table 2-5 is configured to store "processing time", "remaining processing time", and "current selection state flag" corresponding to a combination of whether data is transmitted by modem communication or inline communication. ing. Here, the “processing time” is a transmission time required for the data amount of the sales totalizer in which the “send” instruction flag is set as shown in FIG. When both communication and in-line communication are performed, the value is a value obtained by adding the required transmission time. The “remaining processing time” is a value obtained by subtracting the “processing time” from the maximum operable time (the maximum operable time when a standard operation is performed) according to the rated capacity of the auxiliary battery 15. It should be noted that the auxiliary battery 15 does not run out of battery immediately after the maximum operable time is exceeded, and a certain amount of time is allowed before the battery runs out. The “current selection state flag” is a state flag indicating which combination is selected from among combinations of whether data is transmitted by modem communication or inline communication, and a state in which the flag “1” is currently selected. Is shown. In addition, "processing time", "remaining processing time",
The “current selection state flag” can be arbitrarily set by the user. On the other hand, each POS terminal device T1
... also has a processing time table 2-5,
In this case, since there is no modem communication, the contents of the processing time table 2-5 are configured to store "processing time" and "remaining processing time" when data is transmitted by in-line communication.

Next, the operation of the POS system will be described with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS.
A program for realizing each function described in these flowcharts is stored in the storage medium 3 or the hard disk 5 in the form of a program code readable by the CPU 1, and its contents are stored in a program memory in the RAM 2. Has been loaded. 5 shows the POS master device MT, and FIG. 6 shows the POS terminal devices T1 and T.
2 is a flowchart showing an operation at the time of AC power failure on the side, and execution is started by interruption every predetermined time. In this case, when an AC power failure occurs, the normal processing program forcibly terminates after performing a process each time data or the like in the middle of processing is saved, but the power failure processing program shown in FIGS. It operates until the battery runs out. The POS master device MT
.. And the POS terminal devices T1, T2,...
The operation of the S master device MT will be mainly described, and the common P
The description of the operation of the OS terminal devices T1, T2,...

First, the POS master device MT and the PO
In any of the S terminal devices T1, T2,.
When detecting a power failure of the AC power supply, the power failure detection unit 12 removes the RAM except for the input unit 6, the display unit 7, the printing unit 8, the drawer 9, and the like.
2. Switching to the power supply from the auxiliary battery 15 to the hard disk 5, the in-line control unit 10, the modem 11, the power failure detection unit 12, the power supply control unit 14, and the timer 16,
Notify U1 of the occurrence of a power failure. Then, when receiving the notification of the occurrence of the power failure from the power failure detection unit 12 (step A1 / B1), the CPU 1 refers to the processing time table 2-5,
The "processing time" in which "1" is set in the "current selection state flag" is read out, set to the timer 16, and the time measurement operation is started (step A2 / B).
2). Here, on the POS master device MT side, CP
U1 refers to the processing time table 2-5 and checks whether execution of inline communication is instructed (step A).
3) Now, in the example of FIG. 4, "send" is set corresponding to the in-line communication, so that each POS terminal device T1, T2,... A4).

Then, each of the POS terminal devices T1, T
At the side 2 ..., it is checked whether or not there is a transmission start instruction from the POS master device MT (step B3). If there is no transmission start instruction, the transmission start instruction is waited until the timer 16 times out (step B4) (step B3). ). If the transmission start is instructed from the POS master device MT before the time is up, the sales totalizer 2-1 for each PLU, the sales totalizer 2-2 for each department, and the sales totalizer 2 for the responsible person in the RAM 2 will be described. -3, referring to the time-based sales totalizer 2-4, selecting a sales totalizer whose instruction flag is set to "send", sequentially reading the contents of the totalizer, and generating transmission data; This transmission data is transmitted to the POS master device MT (step B5). The transmission operation is repeated until all the contents of the selected summer have been transmitted (step B6). In this case, the condition is that the timer 16 does not time out during the transmission operation (step B4).
Here, if all the contents of the selected totalizer can be transmitted normally before the timer 16 times out, the CPU 1 notifies the power control unit 14 of the end of the process. Then, the power supply to the auxiliary battery 15 is cut off by the power supply control unit 14 (step B7). When the POS master device MT instructs the start of data transmission, each of the POS terminal devices T1, T2,. POS master device MT
Send to the side.

On the other hand, each POS terminal device T1, T2
When the data transmitted from the POS master device MT is received, each POS terminal device T
A collection operation for sequentially collecting data from the 1, T2... Side is performed (step A5). In this case, the POS master device M
T is not just a function as a store controller,
Since it functions as a terminal device, it also collects the contents of its own sales totalizer when collecting data. Then, it is checked whether or not all the data from all the terminal devices including itself have been collected (step A6). If the data is being collected, the timer 16 is counted up (step A7).
The data collection operation is repeated (Step A5). here,
If data from all terminals can be collected normally before the time is up (step A
6) With reference to the processing time table 2-5, it is checked whether "send" is set corresponding to the modem communication (step A9). In this case, since "Send" is set,
Proceeding to step A10, transmission of the collected data to the host computer HT via the modem 11 is started. Then, it is checked whether all collected data has been transmitted (step A1).
1) During transmission, the operation of transmitting the collected data to the host computer HT is repeated until the timer 16 times out (step A12). Here, if all collected data has been transmitted normally, the CPU 1
Notifies the power control unit 14 of the end of the process, and shuts off the power supply of the auxiliary battery 15 (step A13). Before the 165 seconds shown in FIG. 4 elapse after the occurrence of the AC power failure, the in-line communication with the POS terminal devices T1, T2,... And the modem communication with the host computer HT are performed. If the processing can be executed normally, the processing is terminated and the auxiliary battery 15 is turned off.

On the other hand, each POS terminal device T1, T2
When the timer 16 times out (steps B3, B5, B6, and B4) during transmission of data to the POS master device MT on the side, or a data transmission instruction is issued from the POS master device MT. If the time-up has occurred without transmission of the data (steps B3 and B4), a state flag indicating that the transmission is not yet processed is stored (step B3).
8) Hereinafter, data saving processing (steps B9 to B14)
Move on to execution. That is, referring to the processing time table 2-5, the remaining processing time (75 seconds in this case) is set in the timer 16 and the measurement operation is started (step B).
9). Then, data to be transmitted to the hard disk 5 (contents of a sales totalizer of a type arbitrarily selected in advance)
Is written and saved (step B10). And
It is checked whether the writing has been completed (step B11). If the writing has not been completed, the writing operation to the hard disk 5 is continued (step B10) until the remaining time set in the timer 16 times out (step B12). When the end of writing is detected, the process proceeds to step B7 to turn off the auxiliary battery 15. However, if the remaining time expires before the end of writing, the power supply to the auxiliary battery 15 is stopped (step B13). ), Write the minimum data to be transmitted to the flash memory 17 (step B14). That is, the writing to the flash memory 17 is performed only when the writing to the hard disk 5 cannot be performed within the remaining processing time due to a disk error or the like. By writing only the minimum required data to the flash memory 17 as small as about 30, data can be reliably saved. When the writing to the flash memory 17 is completed in this way, the process proceeds to step B7, and the auxiliary battery 15 is turned off.

On the other hand, on the POS master device MT side,
If the processing time has expired during data collection (steps A5 to A7), a state flag indicating that the data has not been collected is stored and stored (step A8), or the data is collected in the host computer HT. If the processing time is up at the time of data transmission (steps A10 to A12), after storing and holding a state flag indicating that transmission is not yet processed (step A14), the above-described step B9 of FIG. Move to the execution of the data saving process (steps A15 to A20) corresponding to .about.B14. Also in this case, the remaining processing time is set in the timer 16 to operate (step A15), and the collected data or the transmission data to the host computer HT is written to the hard disk 5 (step A16). Here, when the writing is completed (step A17), the auxiliary battery 15 is turned off (step A13), but when the remaining time is up before the writing is completed (step A14), the power supply to the hard disk 5 is stopped. (Step A15)
The minimum data is written to the flash memory 17 (step A16), and the auxiliary battery 15 is turned off (step A13).

After the process at the time of the AC power failure is performed, when the AC power is restored, the POS master device MT
And each POS terminal device T1, T2,... Operates as follows. That is, when the AC power return signal is input from the power failure detection unit 12, the CPU 1 determines whether the power has just returned (step A21 / A15). 5. Collected data or host computer HT in 5
It is checked whether data to be transmitted to the server has been saved (step A22 / B16). Here, when the presence of data is detected, the corresponding data in the hard disk 5 is transferred to the RAM 2 and restored, and the data in the hard disk 5 is cleared, and there is a power failure, and the data is restored to the RAM 2. Is stored (step A23 / B17). If the data is not saved in the hard disk 5, it is checked whether the data is saved in the flash memory 17 (step A2).
4 / B18), if there is, the corresponding data in the flash memory 17 is transferred to the RAM 2 and restored, and the data in the flash memory 17 is cleared, and there is a power failure, and the data is restored to the RAM 2 Is stored (step A25 / B1).
9).

As described above, in this POS system, when the AC power supply is interrupted, the POS master device MT, including itself, responds to this and the POS terminal devices T1, T2,. Since the sales totalizer is called and the contents of the totalizer are transmitted to the POS master device MT, the POS master device MT can collect this and save the collected data. In this case, when there is no power failure on the POS master device MT side, the contents of the sales totalizer can be written to its own hard disk 5 and saved under certain conditions. Further, if writing to the hard disk 5 cannot be performed, it can be written to its own flash memory 17 and saved. In addition, only the contents of the sales totalizer arbitrarily selected from the various types of totalizers are transmitted to the POS master device MT at the time of power failure, or written to the hard disk 5 of the user when transmission is impossible. The evacuation can be performed in a short time, and even the auxiliary battery 15 having a small capacity can reliably protect important data. Further, when writing to the hard disk 5 is not possible, the minimum required data which is further narrowed down is written to the flash memory 17, so that the security can be improved. On the other hand, on the POS master device MT side, the data transmitted from each of the POS terminal devices T1, T2,... At the time of the AC power failure can be transmitted to the host computer HT and saved. In this case, when transmission is impossible, data can be saved to the hard disk 5 or the flash memory 17 in the same manner as in the POS terminal device. If the operator is notified at the start of the normal processing based on various state flags stored and held during the power failure of the AC power supply or immediately after the AC power supply is restored, it is possible to determine what state the operator is in. You can know. Also, when a power outage occurs,
Switching to the power supply to the auxiliary battery 15, in this case,
Input unit 6, display unit 7, printing unit 8, drawer 9 which is heavy load
And so on, and only the devices necessary for data transmission and the evacuation memory are supplied with power, so that even the auxiliary battery 15 with a small capacity can reliably hold data. .

The present invention is applicable not only to the POS system but also to a stand-alone type data processing device and other computer communication systems.

[0021]

According to the present invention, the contents of the volatile memory are not protected by the backup battery at the time of the power failure of the main power supply, and any kind of data stored in the volatile memory is immediately stored after the power failure occurs. By saving only data, necessary data can be surely protected even if an auxiliary battery having a small capacity is used. In addition, the terminal device does not protect the contents of the volatile memory with a backup battery at the time of the power failure of the main power supply. By switching to the power supply from the power supply, data can be automatically transmitted from the terminal device to the data collection device when a power failure occurs even if an auxiliary battery with a small capacity is used.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram showing a POS system.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a POS system device MT.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the contents of various sales totalizers.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the contents of a processing time table 2-5.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a POS system device M when an AC power failure occurs.
9 is a flowchart showing the operation on the T side.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of each POS terminal device T1, T2,.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 CPU 2 RAM 2-1 Total sales unit by PLU 2-2 Total sales unit by section 2-3 Sales total unit by manager 2-4 Sales total unit by time zone 2-5 Processing time table 3 Storage medium 5 Hard disk 10 In-line control unit 11 Modem 12 Power failure detection unit 13 AC power supply unit 14 Power supply control unit 15 Auxiliary battery 16 Timer 17 Flash memory T1 to T3 POS terminal device MT POS master device HT Host computer

Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification symbol FI G07G 1/12 331 G06F 15/21 310Z

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A data processing apparatus having an auxiliary power supply in addition to a main power supply, a volatile data storage means for storing a plurality of types of data, and a type of data stored in the volatile data storage means. A data type storage means for storing an arbitrary type of data, a non-volatile data storage means for storing and holding data, a detection means for detecting the occurrence of a power failure of the main power supply, and the occurrence of a power failure being detected by the detection means. Power supply switching means for switching to power supply from an auxiliary power supply, and the volatile data storage means is stored in the volatile data storage means in a state where the occurrence of a power failure is detected by the detection means and power is supplied from the auxiliary power supply. Storage control means for transferring data corresponding to the type stored in the data type storage means to the non-volatile data storage means for storing and storing the data. The data processing apparatus characterized by the. 2. The storage control means transfers data in the volatile data storage means to the nonvolatile data storage means until a predetermined time elapses after the occurrence of a power failure is detected by the detection means. 2. The data processing device according to claim 1, wherein the data processing device stores the data. 3. A data processing device comprising a plurality of terminal devices provided with an auxiliary power source in addition to a main power source, and a data collection device for collecting data transmitted from each terminal device, wherein each terminal device is A volatile data storage means, a transmission means for transmitting the data in the data storage means to the data collection device, a detection means for detecting the occurrence of a power failure of the main power supply, and a power failure occurrence detected by the detection means. Power supply switching means for supplying power from an auxiliary power supply only to the data storage means and the data transmission means, and the detection means detects the occurrence of a power failure and the data storage means and the data transmission from the auxiliary power supply. In the state where power is supplied to the means, the data transmission means transmits data in the data storage means to a data collection device. That the data processing device.